Taiwan voices high expectation for upcoming Xi-Ma meeting

TAIPEI -- Taiwan politicians, media and business people were upbeat over the news that Xi Jinping and Ma Ying-jeou will meet in Singapore Saturday.

Andrew Hsia, Taiwan's mainland affairs chief, told a press conference Wednesday afternoon that the island expects the meeting to consolidate the current peaceful situation across the Taiwan Strait and lead to "a possible regular arrangement like the meetings between cross-Strait affairs chiefs."

The meeting indicates firm resolve from the two sides to maintain positive interaction and protect cross-Strait peace, Hsia said.

The Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan's ruling party, hailed the meeting as "a major watershed" for mutually beneficial cooperation.

KMT Chair Eric Chu said that the landmark meeting will push forward the cross-Strait relationship and build mutual trust based on the 1992 Consensus.

Almost all newspapers, TV news channels and news websites in Taiwan through Tuesday night to Wednesday covered the upcoming meeting.

On Wednesday morning, major local media flocked the island's legislature, when Mao Chi-kuo, head of Taiwan's executive authority, came to brief Wang Jin-pyng, head of the legislature, about the meeting.

Wang said after the briefing that the legislature supports any cross-Strait dialogue that is conducive to regional peace and stability and expects the meeting to be a success and meet people's expectations.

During the meeting, the two leaders will exchange views on promoting the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations.

It will be the first such meeting between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan since 1949 when the Kuomintang, led by Chiang Kai-shek, fled to Taiwan after being defeated in a civil war.

The Taiwan-based United Daily News called the meeting "the most important event in cross-Strait relations" in a report Wednesday.

"The meeting between Xi and Ma will bring cross-Strait exchanges to a new level and set the tone for cross-Strait policies in the future," the article wrote. "No matter what they will talk about, it will be the most important event in nearly seven decades and profoundly affect cross-Strait ties in the future."