President Hu Jintao expects ties with Taiwan to remain the same despite an imminent, once-in-a-decade leadership change in Beijing, a top Taiwanese politician said on Wednesday.
Taiwan’s former vice-president, Lien Chan, made the comments after meeting Hu at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum in Vladivostok last week.
“I had a rather lengthy discussion with Hu and he told me that even though [Beijing] is entering a stage of personnel reshuffle for the government, the cross-strait policy will remain the same,” Lien said.
“The continuity of the cross-strait relationship is to be maintained in the future,” he told a press conference after returning to Taipei.
They did not talk about Hu’s presumed successor and Vice-President Xi Jinping, Lien said. Xi has disappeared from public view in recent days, fuelling speculation about what has caused his absence.
Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou, who took office in 2008 on a Beijing-friendly platform, said earlier this year that he did not expect any major change in ties under Beijing’s new leadership.