TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The KMT has denied reports that Chair Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) failed to attend a meeting with a visiting youth delegation from Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party.
Citing a diplomatic source, Nownews reported that Cheng did not turn up to a prearranged meeting and that the party declined to allow a vice chair to attend in her place — reportedly angering the visiting delegation. A KMT insider said that although the KMT previously maintained strong ties with the LDP, exchanges between the two parties had declined under Cheng.
Since former KMT Chair Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) established the party’s international affairs department, every subsequent chair has personally received LDP youth delegations. During a previous visit, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) also met with the group.
KMT Spokesperson Yin Nai-ching (尹乃菁) rejected claims that a meeting between Cheng and the delegation had been finalized or that the delegation requested a meeting with a vice chair, per UDN. She also denied reports that the KMT considered such a meeting unnecessary.
Yin said the meeting fell through because of scheduling conflicts. She said the foreign ministry, which arranged the delegation’s itinerary, proposed time slots that overlapped with Cheng’s existing commitments. According to Yin, alternative times proposed by the KMT were said to be inconvenient.
A KMT Central Committee member said previous LDP youth visits organized directly by the party faced fewer scheduling constraints, per Liberty Times. The member added that the latest visit depended on arrangements made by the foreign ministry, which may have favored the ruling DPP.
DPP Spokesperson Wu Cheng (吳崢) criticized the KMT over the incident, calling the absence disrespectful, per Liberty Times. He said the LDP delegation had productive discussions at DPP headquarters and expressed hope the episode would not harm Japan’s perception of Taiwan.
