'Taiwan independence' not to be promoted: Ma

TAIPEI - Taiwan will not promote "one China, one Taiwan" nor "Taiwan independence" inside or outside of the island, its leader Ma Ying-jeou stressed on Monday.

Ma made the comments when addressing a ceremony, held by Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), to mark the 20th anniversary of the historic "Wang-Koo meeting," which laid the foundation for peaceful development of cross-Strait relations.

"We are all people of Chinese descent and we share blood ties, history and culture," he said, adding that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan have set a precedent for eastern Asia and the world to peacefully work out disputes.

Ma said he hoped the two sides will continue to deepen cooperation and exchanges in multiple fields, including the economy, trade, culture, science and technology and environment. "It is of significance that we hold the ceremony here today," he said.

In April 1993, Wang Daohan, head of the mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS), and Koo Chen-fu, chairman of the SEF, met in Singapore, paving the way for the improvement of cross-Strait ties.

Founded in 1990 and 1991, respectively, the SEF and the ARATS are the non-governmental organizations authorized by Taiwan and the mainland to engage in cross-Strait talks.

Ma underlined the importance of the "1992 Consensus," saying there would have been no "Wang-Koo meeting" without the consensus. He said the "Wang-Koo meeting" led cross-Strait relations into a new era where confrontations turned into communications and negotiations replacing the use of force.

The most valuable legacy of the "Wang-Koo meeting" is "holding pragmatic negotiation and seeking common ground while resolving differences," Ma said.

He said the island will further expand cross-Strait exchanges and push forward the establishment of representative offices of the ARATS and the SEF on each other's side.