TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Mainland Affairs Council is worried that the meeting between KMT Chair Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) will give the international community the wrong signal about Taiwan, reports said Saturday.

China is doing its utmost to picture its relations with Taiwan as a domestic issue, and Cheng responded too positively, MAC Deputy Minister Shen Yu-chung (沈有忠) told a seminar Saturday. He added the government fears the Friday meeting will give the US and the global community the wrong impression, per CNA.

The Taiwan Strait is not just a subject for Taiwan and China, but also attracts international concern, Shen said. There needs to be a domestic consensus first, before Taiwan can deepen cooperation with international allies to safeguard peace and stability in the region.

Shen said the government is planning to intensify contacts with the US ahead of the May meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump. 

The deputy minister accused Cheng of playing along with Xi. The fact that the Chinese authorities asked reporters to leave halfway through her address showed a lack of respect, he said.