Mainland's Taiwan affairs official meets visiting KMT vice chairperson

BEIJING - Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, met on Thursday with Andrew Hsia, vice chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party.

Song said that the mainland is willing to enhance exchanges and build up mutual trust with the KMT and work with the KMT to promote relations between the two parties and two sides of the Taiwan Straits, based on the common political foundation of upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing "Taiwan independence".

Guided by the conviction that the people on both sides of the Straits are of one family, the mainland will continue to respect, care for and deliver benefits to Taiwan compatriots and advance cross-Straits exchanges and cooperation in all fields, he said.

Hsia expressed his hope that, on the basis of upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing "Taiwan independence", the two parties would maintain communication, cooperate with sincerity, deepen mutual trust and expand common ground, while properly managing differences, so as to enhance the wellbeing of people on both sides, safeguard peace and stability in the region and promote peaceful development of cross-Straits relations.