Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou said Tuesday he will not consider meeting his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao until a raft of decades-old problems between the two sides have been resolved, it was reported.
In an interview with the Taipei-based Commercial Times, Ma was quoted as saying now was not the right time for him to meet Hu, although cross-Strait ties have been improving.
"There are a lot of pressing issues that need to be tackled, including an investment protection agreement, double taxation agreement and mechanisms to solve disputes" arising from ever-closer economic exchanges, he said.
"As elsewhere in the world, only after a great majority of technical issues are solved would national leaders meet, in a symbolic manner."
Ma dismissed speculation that his bid for the chairmanship of Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang (KMT) is aimed to pave way for meeting with Hu.
"I have never thought of meeting Hu as the Kuomintang leader," he said. "I've said before that leaders of the two sides may meet one day, but not now."
Ma has started his campaign to chair the Kuomintang party in the one-man election to be held this month. If confirmed in the post, he would succeed Wu Po-hsiung, who is set to retire in September.
Ma called on the two sides to set aside political disputes "and instead centre more efforts on the economic issues… I think that's the right direction" of the exchanges lying ahead.
Beijing still regards Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary, although the island has governed itself since the end of a civil war in 1949.
Ties between the two sides have improved dramatically since Ma came to power last year promising to promote reconciliation and trade links, in marked contrast to his predecessor, Chen Shui-ban, whose regular pro-independence rhetoric irked Beijing.
In recent months Taipei and Beijing have signed a raft of agreements that have led to regular direct flights and greater cooperation across the Taiwan strait.
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