June 26, 2014
No. 139
Concerning the June 25 meeting between Minister Wang Yu-chi of the Mainland Affairs Council and Minister Zhang Zhijun of mainland China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, released the following statement through her spokesperson on June 26:
“We welcome the first visit of China’s top official in charge of Cross-Strait relations to Taiwan, following the historic visit of his counterpart to mainland China in February. The event shows the dynamism of the process of rapprochement, established in 2008. We encourage both sides to continue to expand bilateral cooperation and links, thus contributing to regional peace and stability.”
The EU has long stressed the importance of stability across the Taiwan Strait and in East Asia. Since President Ma Ying-jeou took office in 2008, the European Union and the European Parliament have passed resolutions or issued statements favorable to Taiwan on 24 separate occasions. The Republic of China government hereby express its welcome and sincere appreciation for this particular statement as an affirmation of progress in cross-strait relations, while calling on the EU to continue to pay attention to and support the peaceful development of cross-strait ties. (E)