Posted on 03/21/2023 3:07:13 AM PDT by FarCenter
Former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou plans to visit mainland China next week, ahead of a potential visit of incumbent Taiwan’s leader Tsai Ing-wen to the United States in April.
Ma will become the first former Taiwanese president to visit the mainland since Kuomintang, then the ruling party of the Republic of China, fled to Taiwan in 1949, 74 years ago.
Ma’s office said there is no arrangement for Ma to go to Beijing or meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping or other mainland officials during the trip between March 27 and April 7. It said the ex-Taiwanese leader will only pay a visit to his ancestors’ tombs and meet mainland students.
Tsai has signaled guarded approval of the visit but some people in Taiwan fear Ma’s visits will play into Beijing’s plans to take over the island.
Just tomb-sweeping
Ma, together with his four sisters and 30 students from his foundation, will visit Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, Chongqing and Shanghai during his trip. They will visit the relics of the 1911 Revolution and the War of Resistance against Japan and meet students from Fudan University, Wuhan University and Hunan University.
The Chinese government said it welcomes Ma’s visit and will do its part to facilitate his visit.
“Paying respects to ancestors around the Qingming Festival is a tradition shared by people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait,” Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said Monday. “Also, more exchanges between young people from both sides can create new energy and inject youthful vitality into the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.”
This year’s Qingming or Ching Ming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, falls on April 5.
(Excerpt) Read more at asiatimes.com ...
Maybe it means surrender? Taiwan must know by now that Joe Biden DOES NOT have their back.
When Ma returns there’ll be hell Taipei.
“Made it, Ma! Top o’ the world!”
Basically, that’s what I think as well. Talk about how to integrate the two nations.
Being recruited as a future puppet president.
It’s very simple, Ma wants to be one of the “Chosen ones..” when in reality this borders on useful idiocy.
Relying on the US “guarantee” is very risky business. Two Chinas become one through negotiation? The NATO “saving” of the Ukes I’m sure has opened many eyes on Taiwan. I don’t think they are ready to see a proxy war against China, that cannot be won, being fought out on their island by the US and it’s allies.
Ma has visited mainland China before, this isn’t anything new. The KMT has always supported cross-straits relations because they consider themselves the legitimate government of China in exile. Chinese reunification has always been their policy, but always under the caveat that it’s not going to be under a Communist dictatorship.
Correction, he has *met* with mainland officials before.
They may try for a solution like Hong Kong had. That will work for awhile.
Maybe they see the American government as corrupt and untrustworthy and decided it’s a bad idea to entrust their future to the idea that they be there when they are needed..
We better start making chips here. We have almost all our eggs in Taiwan’s basket. How stupid is that.
It means lots of Taiwanese want to find some way of not becoming a battlefield.
another Hong Kong??????
Peaceful re-unification.
Gracefully surrender the things of youth: birds, clean air, tuna, Taiwan.
It has not been a good idea to believe that the US would go to war over Taiwan.
That has never, ever been true - at least not since 1973.
It’s not a good idea to believe the US period. The US has developed quite the reputation for being duplicitous in all their dealings.
“ Ma has visited mainland China before, this isn’t anything new. The KMT has always supported cross-straits relations because they consider themselves the legitimate government of China”
What year do you live in??
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.