The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) indicated that the Hong Kong meeting was held in October 1992 between the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and the Association for Relations across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) after the SEF and the ARATS had been respectively authorized by their governments on both sides of the Strait. According to all the data related to the meeting and the follow-up developments of more than a month, both sides did not reach any concrete conclusion on the interpretation of “one China.” Both sides across the Strait did set aside their disputes based on mutual understanding and have thus paved the way for Koo-Wang Talks the following year.
Since June 1995, China has attempted to use these unresolved disputes as an excuse to suspend the resumption of talks between the SEF and the ARATS. In recent years, it has further ignited new disputes about the so-called preconditions, including the “1992 consensus” and the “one China” principle. These disputes only prove the fact that a consensus on this issue has never existed. If there was a so-called consensus, such disputes would not have arisen today. Nevertheless, in order to break the deadlock and in consideration of China’s position, President Chen Shui-bian proposed to “make the achievements gained at the 1992 Hong Kong meeting the basis” for the resumption of talks immediately. The MAC indicated that the proposal made by President Chen Shui-bian has been the most neutral description of the actual situation at that time. President Chen’s expression should serve as an excellent foundation for the resumption of cross-strait talks at an appropriate time. If other explanations were made to replace President Chen’s expression of the situation, it would not only provide the public with unrestricted freedom of interpretation, but also create grave misunderstandings. This will not be beneficial to the resolution of the current cross-strait issues, but rather trigger further disputes and skepticism. This is not conducive to the development of cross-strait relations and the establishment of domestic consensus.