The Kuomintang (KMT) Party of China Chairman Lien Chan said in
Shanghai Tuesday that Taiwan's best chance to achieve another
"economic miracle" lies in the mainland.
"Taiwan achieved an economic miracle in the past decades and is
now sprinting toward another economic miracle," Lien told mainland
media before ending his historic eight-day mainland tour.
"The mainland is a chance Taiwan cannot afford to miss, no
matter who is in control," he said. "We should, proceeding from the
people's interest, not repeat the old way of confrontation and
conflicts, but work for reconciliation and dialogue for the
promotion of stability and peace across the Taiwan Straits."
The starting point for the improvement of cross-Straits
relations lies in "mutual benefits and common prosperity in the
overall environment of peace and stability," he said.
Lien said the mainland has made outstanding achievements in
economic growth, attracting foreign investment and foreign trade.
"Through cooperation (with the mainland), Taiwan will achieve
greater economic successes," he said.
Statistics show indirect trade volume between the mainland and
Taiwan totaled more than US$400 billion, and Taiwan has obtained an
accumulated trade surplus of US$270 billions. In 2004 alone, the
trade volume across the Straits reached more than US$78
billion.
Lien said that the KMT's mainland policy has been clear since
the 1980s. It stresses mutual benefits, common prosperity and
win-win situation for both sides across the Straits in the overall
environment of peace, he said.
"Major breakthroughs were attained under the policy" when the
KMT was in power, Lien said. "If the trend had continued in the
past decade, the cross-Straits situation could not have
deteriorated to its present stage."
On the new channels just opened between the KMT and the CPC
during his talks with CPC leader Hu Jintao, Lien said that they
could also serve as a platform for business people across the
Straits to establish closer contacts.
Lien said that the KMT's most pressing task will be pushing for
direct flights of non-stop chartered planes for both passengers and
cargo on a regular basis between the two sides of the Taiwan
Straits.
Direct flights can save 16 percent on the cost for cargo and 20
percent for passengers, Lien said. Without a non-stop flight, Lien
Chan himself has to spend four more hours to fly from Shanghai to
Taipei, because of a stopover in Hong Kong.
Direct and non-stop charter flights across the Taiwan Straits
were launched in January during the Chinese lunar new year, the
first in 56 years in a move widely hailed by people across the
Straits.
(Xinhua News Agency May 4, 2005)