Taiwan’s Leader Gets Into the Act

Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian on Monday proposed peace talks with Beijing, as a political rival concluded a headline-grabbing visit to China.

Implicit in Chen’s speech during a visit to the Marshall Islands was a message to Chinese leaders that they should be talking to him, not to Lien Chan, whom he has twice defeated at the polls.

“The door for dialogue and negotiation is still open between the two sides,” Chen said. “Under the principles of democracy, peace and parity, the two sides can at any time begin to have contact, dialogue and negotiations.”

The Chinese leadership, which has rebuffed all of Chen’s requests to meet during the last five years, has warmly welcomed Lien, making the Taiwanese president look ineffectual on one of Taiwan’s gravest challenges: China’s threat of force to regain sovereignty over the island.

The shadow of war has lingered over the Taiwan Strait ever since the Communist Party took over China in 1949 and the defeated Nationalist government retreated to Taiwan. China regards the island as a secessionist province.

In his speech Monday, Chen said the rivals needed to talk to avert a conflict, which could quickly involve U.S. forces seeking to defend a staunchly pro-American democracy against a communist power.

But Beijing is unlikely to be impressed until Chen shows more interest in its goal of unification. The Taiwanese leader continues to insist that only Taiwan’s voters can determine its future.

Chen spoke as 68-year-old Lien wrapped up an eight-day “journey of peace.” Lien left Shanghai for Taipei today.

During his trip, Beijing said it would lift restrictions on Chinese tourists going to Taiwan, offered the island a pair of giant pandas and offered to scrap tariffs on more than 10 kinds of fruit from Taiwan and allow imports of six more types of fruit.

China and Taiwan’s political relationship has been largely frozen since 1949, and Lien’s visit is the first by any leader from his Nationalist Party since.

President Chen hopes to reclaim the initiative this week when another opposition leader, James Soong, travels to China on Thursday. Chen has said he is giving Soong a personal message for Chinese President Hu Jintao.