Taiwan's Opposition Party Embarks On China's Tour As Military Drills Continue

The opposition party of Taiwan on Wednesday sent an official delegation to mainland China while military exercises across the Taiwan Strait continue.

"The Kuomintang has always safeguarded the RoC (Republic of China, Taiwan), the safety and well-being of the Taiwanese people, and promoted peaceful, stable development of cross-strait relations and regional stability," the party said in a statement ahead of the trip.

Andrew Hsia, Kuomintang vice chairman, is leading the delegation.

"That is the very reason we send a fact-finding delegation on Aug. 10 to visit Taiwanese communities that study and live in southern mainland China. This apolitical trip aims at learning their views and providing assistance," the party said.

The trip assumed significance as China emphasized its one-China policy after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island nation for less than 24 hours last week.

Pelosi visited Taiwan despite Beijing's warnings that the island is a "breakaway province" and that her visit would be in violation of the country's "one-China policy."

She was the first sitting US House speaker to visit Taipei in the past 25 years.

Soon after she left Taipei on Aug. 3, Beijing launched massive military exercises on Thursday which were scheduled to end on Sunday, but the drills still continue.

The Chinese military did not say when the latest drills would end but stated they would "focus on anti-submarine and air-to-ship strikes" and a "blockade" in waters near Taiwan.

Taiwanese military also launched exercises on Tuesday.

Early today, Beijing said: "We are one China, and Taiwan is part of China. This is an indisputable fact supported by history and the law. Taiwan has never been a state; its status as part of China is unalterable."

But Beijing noted that "one country, two systems are our basic principles for resolving the Taiwan question and the best approach to realizing national reunification."

It added that "peaceful" cross-Taiwan Strait "reunification is of benefit not only to the Chinese nation but to all peoples and the international community as a whole."

China views Taiwan as its "breakaway province" while Taipei has insisted on its independence since 1949 with full diplomatic relations with 14 nations. -