Ever since Ma Ying-jeou became president of Taiwan last year, cross-strait relations have improved greatly. Inevitably, there has been speculation as to whether there may be a meeting between him and President Hu Jintao , who is also head of the Chinese Communist Party.
One problem, seemingly trivial but actually important, is how the two will address one another. Or, rather, how Hu will address Ma. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and so refers to Ma only as the 'leader' of Taiwan, not as its president.
Thus, last November, when Chen Yunlin, director of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait - the most senior mainland official to visit Taipei in almost six decades - met Taiwan's leader, he refrained from using the term 'Mr President' and instead just said 'you'.
But, last month, Ma assumed the chairmanship of the Kuomintang, removing that obstacle since the two men can now meet as heads of political parties. Ma, in an interview with Reuters after he became chairman, was asked about a meeting with his mainland counterpart. He said he would not exclude the possibility of such a meeting one day. 'At the moment,' he said, 'we have our hands full with economic issues.'
The question of timing also relates to the terms of office of the two men. Ma is expected to run for a second term in 2012, but Hu's term as party leader ends in October of that year. So, speculation focused on 2012, either before or after Ma's re-election and before Hu steps down.
And, if the meeting seals a peace agreement, so the thinking goes, the two men would be a shoo-in for the Nobel Peace Prize.
But, in recent weeks, speculation has shifted from 2012 to 2011. That is because 2011 marks the 100th anniversary of the fall of China's last imperial dynasty, precipitated by the Wuhan Uprising on October 10, 1911, which led to the birth of the Republic of China. October 10 is marked by Taiwan, formally still known as the Republic of China, as National Day.