Taiwan KMT chief in Singapore ahead of China visit
By Geert De Clercq
SINGAPORE, April 17 (Reuters) - Lien Chan, the leader of Taiwan's
opposition Nationalist Party, met Singapore statesman Lee Kuan Yew
at the weekend, just weeks before Lien is set to make a
controversial visit to China.
Singapore authorities played down the visit as "private and
unofficial", though the city-state has in the past acted as a
go-between between China and Taiwan, which China views as a
breakaway province.
"Lien Chan was invited by Lee Kuan Yew to give a speech. He was the
guest of honour at a dinner hosted by Lee (on Saturday night),
Chang Jung-kung, a spokesman for the Nationalist Party, also known
as the Kuomintang (KMT), told Reuters.
Lee was Singapore's prime minister from 1965 to 1990 and remains an
influential cabinet member as Minister Mentor in his son Lee Hsien
Loong's government.
A delegation of the Kuomintang -- which favours eventual
unification with a democratic China -- visited China early this
month, the first official visit since 1949, when the party that
once ruled all of China fled to Taiwain after losing a civil war to
the communists. Lien is expected to visit China in May, in a move
likely to irk pro-independence Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, who
is shunned by the Chinese government.
The Kuomintang spokesman denied reports in Taiwan media that said
Lien had met a Chinese official in Singapore.
"Lien Chan made a private and unofficial visit at the invitation of
the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy," a Singapore government
spokesman said.
Lien gave a speech behind closed doors at the school on Sunday
morning, an official said.
"The mainland Chinese trust LKY (Lee Kuan Yew). He's supposed to
see how they can ease the cross-Strait tension," a source close to
the school told Reuters, referring to the Taiwan Strait.
Although Taiwan and Singapore have no official relations, they have
maintained close ties since the 1960s, when Taiwan began allowing
Singapore's armed forces to train on the island. Lee rose to power
on an anti-communist platform and Singapore did not establish
diplomatic relations with China until 1990, a month before Lee
stepped down as prime minister.
But diplomats say Lee is trusted by China and Taiwan and played a
key role in setting up historic talks between the two in Singapore
in April 1993.
Singapore-China relations hit a bump last year, when Lee Hsien
Loong visited Taiwan just before becoming prime minister.
Relations have warmed since then. During a visit to Hong Kong in
April, Lee senior said China's anti-secession law had stabilised
the tension between China and Taiwan by removing ambiguity.
On March 14, China's parliament passed an anti-secession bill that
authorises the use of force against Taiwan if the democratic island
declares independence. (Additional reporting by Alice Hung)