Xi invites Taiwanese opposition leader to China

• Beijing slaps sanctions on Japanese lawmaker over repeated visits to Taiwan

ISTANBUL

Chinese President Xi Jinping has invited Taiwanese opposition leader Cheng Li-wun to visit China.

Xi invited Cheng, leader of the Kuomintang (KMT) party, to visit the Chinese mainland from April 7 to 12, Beijing-based Xinhua News reported Monday.

Beijing said Cheng has expressed her willingness to visit the “mainland” on multiple occasions since taking office, adding that the invitation aims to promote ties between the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) and the KMT and support the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.

After the announcement, Cheng said she has “gladly accepted” the invitation, saying the visit would show that the two sides “are not destined for war,” Taiwan-based Central News Agency reported.

“We must firmly pursue a path of peace for the sake of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, regional stability, and the well-being of future generations,” Cheng told reporters at the KMT headquarters in Taipei.

Thanking Xi for the invitation, she said efforts to improve cross-strait relations during her upcoming visit must be based on the “1992 consensus” and opposition to “Taiwan independence.”

Japan-China tensions over Taiwan

In a separate development, Beijing on Monday announced sanctions against Keiji Furuya, a member of Japan’s House of Representatives, who it said has repeatedly visited Taiwan despite China’s opposition and engaged with
“Taiwan independence” forces.

China’s Foreign Ministry accused Furuya of “seriously violating the one-China principle” and interfering in its internal affairs.

The measures include freezing assets in China, banning transactions and cooperation with him, and denying him entry into China, including Hong Kong and Macao.

Tokyo called the sanctions “unacceptable” and “regrettable.”

"Japan wants China to swiftly retract sanctions on the lawmaker," Kyodo News reported, citing a government spokesman.

China considers Taiwan its “breakaway province,” while Taipei has insisted on its independence since 1949.