Ma says economy comes first, politics later
Source: Agencies/Shanghai Daily |
January 16, 2012, Monday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ECONOMY first, politics later. That's the mandate Taiwanese voters have given their re-elected leader in regard to relations with the Chinese mainland.
Ma Ying-jeou made clear after declaring victory on Saturday that he wants to strengthen economic ties with the mainland before addressing political issues.
He told reporters there was no clear timetable for beginning any political talks with the mainland.
"With mainland relations, we will work on the economy first and politics later, work on the easier tasks first and the more difficult ones later," Ma said after winning a second four-year term. "There is no rush to open up political dialogue. It's not a looming issue."
The two sides split amid civil war in 1949.
The re-election of Ma is a vote of support for his four-year economic rapprochement with the mainland, which has taken annual bilateral trade to some US$145 billion and helped cushion the island's export-led economy from the global downturn.
Ma's policy of controlled opening of the economy since his first term began in 2008 boosted trade and investment, though key sectors such as banking and top-end technology remain only partially open.
The number of direct flights between Taiwan and the mainland went from almost none to 100 a day and some 2.6 million mainland tourists have visited the island, spending more than US$3 billion in the process.
The policy reached a zenith in a groundbreaking 2010 Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement that slashed hundreds of tariffs on Taiwan exports to the mainland.
The Chinese mainland has become Taiwan's top trading partner, taking some 28 percent of its exports last year compared with 12 percent for the United States. Bilateral trade between the mainland and Taiwan totalled US$145.37 billion in 2010, up 36.9 percent from 2009.
Officially reported and approved Taiwan investment in the mainland totalled US$39.3 billion during Ma's first four years, almost two-thirds of the total US$58.3 billion in the 16 years prior to his first term.
There are signs of renewed interest in banking links between the two sides, while mainland investment into Taiwan has begun to trickle in, totalling US$170.1 million from when it was first allowed in June 2009 until October 2011.
Ma's victory is conducive to cross-Strait trade and financial exchanges, Wang Jun, a senior government researcher in Beijing, told Reuters.
"I do not think the pace will accelerate much, but relations will definitely improve. We also need to watch whether Ma will adjust his policies to bring more positive changes. Maybe there will be some difference in strategies and policies in his second term."
Ma Ying-jeou made clear after declaring victory on Saturday that he wants to strengthen economic ties with the mainland before addressing political issues.
He told reporters there was no clear timetable for beginning any political talks with the mainland.
"With mainland relations, we will work on the economy first and politics later, work on the easier tasks first and the more difficult ones later," Ma said after winning a second four-year term. "There is no rush to open up political dialogue. It's not a looming issue."
The two sides split amid civil war in 1949.
The re-election of Ma is a vote of support for his four-year economic rapprochement with the mainland, which has taken annual bilateral trade to some US$145 billion and helped cushion the island's export-led economy from the global downturn.
Ma's policy of controlled opening of the economy since his first term began in 2008 boosted trade and investment, though key sectors such as banking and top-end technology remain only partially open.
The number of direct flights between Taiwan and the mainland went from almost none to 100 a day and some 2.6 million mainland tourists have visited the island, spending more than US$3 billion in the process.
The policy reached a zenith in a groundbreaking 2010 Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement that slashed hundreds of tariffs on Taiwan exports to the mainland.
The Chinese mainland has become Taiwan's top trading partner, taking some 28 percent of its exports last year compared with 12 percent for the United States. Bilateral trade between the mainland and Taiwan totalled US$145.37 billion in 2010, up 36.9 percent from 2009.
Officially reported and approved Taiwan investment in the mainland totalled US$39.3 billion during Ma's first four years, almost two-thirds of the total US$58.3 billion in the 16 years prior to his first term.
There are signs of renewed interest in banking links between the two sides, while mainland investment into Taiwan has begun to trickle in, totalling US$170.1 million from when it was first allowed in June 2009 until October 2011.
Ma's victory is conducive to cross-Strait trade and financial exchanges, Wang Jun, a senior government researcher in Beijing, told Reuters.
"I do not think the pace will accelerate much, but relations will definitely improve. We also need to watch whether Ma will adjust his policies to bring more positive changes. Maybe there will be some difference in strategies and policies in his second term."
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