US State Department Calls For Direct Taipei-Beijing Communication

The US State Department told Reuters that meaningful dialogue across the Taiwan Strait must involve Taiwan’s democratically elected government, following a meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Kuomintang Chair Cheng Li-wun. Beijing continues to refuse high-level talks with Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, labeling it separatist. Taiwan’s presidential office says voters will never accept China’s sovereignty claims, while the KMT defends the meeting as an effort to ease tensions.