TAIPEI (Taiwan News) —  A delegation of Taiwanese lawmakers, led by the majority leader of the Legislative Yuan Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁), met with Wang Huning (王滬寧), the chair of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, on Saturday (April 27). 

Wang, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, China’s top leadership body, was tasked with crafting China’s policy towards Taiwan in early 2023. During Saturday’s meeting with the 17 Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers, Wang stressed Beijing’s adherence to the so-called “1992 Consensus” as a framework for dialogue, while stating his opposition to Taiwanese independence and outside interference in cross-strait affairs, reported CNA.

The group of 17 KMT lawmakers departed Taiwan on Friday (April 26), with Fu saying that the purpose of the trip would be to “break the ice” of official cross-strait diplomacy, which has been more or less stagnant since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was elected in 2016.

Before his departure, Fu said his goals for the trip would be to discuss reopening Taiwan to Chinese tourists and to improve trade relations with China, especially for Taiwan’s agriculture industry. 

By Sunday (April 28), it appeared that the KMT delegation’s efforts to reignite cross-strait diplomacy were effective. Agencies of the Chinese government made several announcements relating to cross-strait tourism, restrictions on Taiwanese agriculture, and support for Hualien, Taiwan, which is still suffering from earthquake damage sustained in April.  

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) said that China will donate prefabricated homes to communities in Hualien via the Red Cross organizations on each side of the Taiwan Strait. 

On Sunday morning, the KMT delegation met with the leadership of China’s General Administration of Customs, with an announcement that China would resume the import of various agricultural and fishery products from Taiwan, reported LTN. 

Furthermore, it was reported that Wang pledged to Fu that China would lower restrictions on Chinese tour groups visiting Taiwan. However, no definite timetable was discussed, since much will depend on the policies of the incoming administration of Lai Ching-te (賴清德). 

As a first step towards renewing cross-strait tourism, Beijing announced that residents of Fujian Province would be permitted to visit Taiwan’s Lienchiang County, also known as the Matsu Islands, as soon as Taipei allows boat and airplanes to resume routes from Fujian’s Pingtan Island. 

In response to the announcement of China’s intention to resume tourism between Fujian and Lienchiang, Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) criticized Beijing’s attempts to put extra diplomatic conditions, such as adherence to the so-called “1992 Consensus,” prior to the resumption of tourist activities, reported UDN. MAC said that such one-sided demands would violate the norm of reciprocity, but it also said it will review the possibility of renewing tourism exchanges in the weeks ahead.  

The KMT delegation’s trip to Beijing follows the recent high-profile meeting of former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) on April 10. Saturday’s meeting with Wang and KMT party members also comes a day after Xi met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday.  

Reports indicate that Saturday’s meeting was also attended by the head of China’s TAO, Song Tao (宋濤). TAO reportedly organized a banquet for the delegation at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on Saturday evening. 

While Fu and the KMT will promote the diplomatic trip to Beijing as a success, the issue of whether it will result in any substantial improvement in cross-strait relations will not be known until after Lai and his cabinet are inaugurated on May 20.   

Many commentators have noted that the KMT’s efforts to conduct cross-strait diplomacy before Lai's inauguration could undermine Taiwan’s whole-of-government approach to cross-strait affairs, while also devaluing Lai’s negotiating power in future exchanges.