TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Chair Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) is reportedly being considered to replace Wu Feng-shan (吳豐山) as chair of the Straits Exchange Foundation following the latter’s resignation.

Wu said Thursday that he agreed to step down after meeting President Lai Ching-te (賴清德), allowing another candidate to take over the post, per UP Media. Su, whose work at the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association has been well received, is reportedly favored by senior officials as Wu’s successor.

Announcing his resignation, Wu said the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, the foundation’s Chinese counterpart, has failed to respond to his goodwill gestures and requests for dialogue. Mainland Affairs Council Spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said political interference by the Chinese Communist Party had prevented interaction between the two quasi-official bodies, per FTNN.

Wu is also believed to have been removed for pursuing dialogue too aggressively, per Newtalk. Wu sought help from a former colleague to arrange a potential meeting in July 2024 without consulting the Mainland Affairs Council or the Presidential Office, a move that reportedly alarmed senior officials, per UP Media.

Wu was unable to follow through on efforts to reestablish contact before being replaced. Insiders told UP Media that his departure may stem from his desire to restart dialogue using a framework grounded in the concept of “zhonghua minzu.“ The framework is unacceptable to Lai’s government, which emphasizes a Taiwan-centered identity.

Zhonghua minzu dates back to the fall of the Qing dynasty (1644- 1912), when people sought a new shared identity for a future nation-state. It eventually aimed to incorporate all ethnicities living under the Qing as a single people, per a Sun Yat-Sen Studies Database article.

Insiders said that if Lai struggles to identify with the Republic of China, accepting zhonghua minzu would be an even harder proposition. Insiders explained that the difference made it difficult for Wu to continue once his views diverged from those of the president.

Tamkang University Professor of Chinese studies Chang Wu-yue (張五岳) said he regretted Wu’s resignation, describing him as one of the few figures respected by the Kuomintang, Democratic Progressive Party and the CCP, per China Times. Chang said that although Wu is rooted in the pro-Taiwan camp, he impartially served as SEF chair.

KMT Legislator Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said Wu’s shift from pledging to restore cross-strait exchanges to resigning after just 14 months in office reflected the failure of Lai’s cross-strait policy, per UDN.