Subjects:´Based on the MAC's investigation, the study schedules of Taiwanese students in China are not affected

´The MAC has always held a positive attitude toward cross-strait negotiations and hopes that the institutionalized negotiations between the SEF and the ARATS will be resumed as soon as possible

´Basic facts of the WTO are different from those of the FTA

 MAC Regular Press Briefing

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Based on the MAC's investigation, the study schedules of Taiwanese students in China are not affected

QUESTION: According to the news report of the Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA), the Beijing government will disperse all foreign students before the staging of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in August. Is this information accurate? Are the Taiwanese students included?

VICE CHAIRMAN LIU: After the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) inquired about the China-based TaiWan Students Union (TWSU), the students there indicated that there was no such thing as what the news article had reported. At present, their study schedules remain unchanged and have not been affected.

The MAC has always held a positive attitude toward cross-strait negotiations and hopes that the institutionalized negotiations between the SEF and the ARATS will be resumed as soon as possible

QUESTION: Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman-designate
Chiang Pin-Kung will travel to China before the end of the month. He has lately expressed several opinions regarding cross-strait negotiations, including making efforts to resume the negotiations between the SEF and the Association of Relations across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) and inviting Taiwan Affairs Office Director Chen Yunlin, who is likely to take over as ARATS Chairman, to visit Taiwan. What is the MAC's view? Also, does the MAC have any different views on the functions of the SEF in the future?

VICE CHAIRMAN LIU:
■ The AMC does not have any information about the itinerary of Chiang Pin-kung’s visit to China, so we do not have any comment at the moment. We will make a further statement once Chiang’s itinerary has been finalized.

■ The MAC has always held a positive attitude toward cross-strait negotiations. We hope that the institutionalized negotiation mechanism between the SEF and the ARATS will be resumed as soon as possible, and that the negotiations will be conducted under the principles of "parity and dignity," and without unilaterally setting various political preconditions.

Basic facts of the WTO are different from those of the FTA

QUESTION: Chiang Pin-kung mentioned that a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) can be signed under the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework using a single customs territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu (abbreviated as Chinese Taipei). Will there be any difficulty with his proposal?

VICE CHAIRMAN LIU: The basic facts of the World Trade Organization (WTO) are different from those of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The FTA has a definite operational platform which has to be operated under the concept of "country." Due to the fact that there is a concept of country that is contained in the FTA, when the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs engage in communications with some countries regarding the FTA, China has always carried out its diplomatic suppression of Taiwan. As such, no achievement has therefore been made. This is where the problem lies.