Economic integration key to cross-Straits ties

The deepening economic cooperation with the mainland also helped Taiwan become part of global economic integration process, which started to take shape at the beginning of this century. After the signing of the ECFA, the island successively reached an investment agreement with Japan and trade cooperation agreements with New Zealand and Singapore, and resumed negotiations on the US-Taiwan Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.

Still, Taiwan has a lot more to deal with in terms of its economic weaknesses. For instance, the widening income gap in Taiwan and its side effects have kept many small businesses and middle class youths from benefiting from the developing cross-Straits ties. As a result, some of them don't realize the necessity of better ties with the mainland, and thus have limited interest in pushing for cross-Straits economic integration.

The Chinese mainland is strong and confident enough to be "a responsible stakeholder", a poor metaphor used by Washington to criticize Beijing for "not shouldering enough responsibilities" as a major power. By seeking to be founding members of the Beijing-proposed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the more than 30 countries, including G7 members such as the United Kingdom and Germany, have proved that Beijing is indeed a responsible rising power.

But a worrying trend against cross-Straits trade has been seen in Taiwan, for example, in last year's stalled commodity trade agreement and anti-service trade agreement movement. Worse, the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which has long denied the 1992 Consensus, is likely to win the 2016 election. The bottom line, no matter which party assumes power in Taiwan, remains the adherence to the 1992 Consensus for the sake of Taiwan residents' well-being.

And only if the bottom line is adhered to can Taiwan's outlook become promising.

The author is a professor at the Institute of Taiwan Studies of Beijing Union University.