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Chinese President Xi Jinping and then Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou (L) wave to the media during a summit in Singapore, November 7, 2015. Photo/REUTERS
TAIPEI – Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou is reportedly planning to break new diplomatic ground again by making an unprecedented trip to China later this month.
Ma once made history by meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2015,
“Ma will travel to China from March 27 to April 7 to visit the cities of Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, Chongqing and Shanghai,” said a statement from Ma’s office, confirming to Reuters on Sunday (19/3/2023).
His representatives did not disclose whether he intended to meet President Xi or other Chinese government officials during the trip.
The visit will mark the first trip to mainland China by a former president or a current Taiwanese leader since supporters of Chiang Kai-shek fled to the island in 1949.
Chiang had his last meeting with Mao Zedong, the leader of the Chinese communist revolution, in 1945.
Later, Presidents Ma and Xi held a historic meeting in 2015 in Singapore, seeking to defuse tensions and increase cooperation.
Since Ma’s successor, Tsai Ing-wen, took office in 2016, relations between the self-ruled island and Beijing have soured.
