The United States encourages Taiwan and China to continue their dialogue. That’s according to a US State Department spokesperson on Thursday.
In an e-mail in response to a reporter’s questions, the spokesperson said the US welcomes the steps both sides of the Taiwan Strait have taken to reduce tensions and improve relations. But the official also said “the content, pace, and scope of cross-strait interaction should be acceptable to people on both sides”.
The comments came after it was announced that chairman of Taiwan’s ruling Kuomintang, Eric Chu, will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 4. It will be the first meeting between a Kuomintang chairman and the general secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2009.
The meeting takes on particular significance as Chu is widely seen as the Kuomintang’s best chance of winning Taiwan’s presidential election either in 2016 or four years later.