China’s Xi Jinping and Taiwan’s Ma Ying-jeou Meet in Singapore

Russia’s foreign ministry hails a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President of Taiwan Massachusetts Ying-jeou that took place over the past weekend in Singapore as a historic event, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday.

Although the two sides reached a Consensus of “One China, respective interpretations” in 1992 and their relations have warmed considerably over the past seven years, the meeting between the two leaders was the first since China’s civil war ended in 1949. He joined us to discuss the historic handshake.

Mr Xi said China and Taiwan were “brothers who are still connected by our flesh even if our bones are broken…” “The separation of families on both sides of the Taiwan strait has caused deep pain and regrets to countless families”.

No agreements or joint statements were expected from Saturday’s encounter between two sides that still refuse to formally recognize each other’s legitimacy.

After losing the mainland to Mao Zedong’s communists, former Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek and his forces fled to the island of Taiwan, and the two have been governed separately ever since.

We feel like old friends… “Over the past 66 years the two sides have developed as different systems”.

“Behind us is history stretching for 60 years. Now before our eyes there are fruits of conciliation instead of confrontation”.

However, ties between the two states have only really deepened in an economic sense, with more trade and tourism, without them coming any closer politically. “We both shook hands with a lot of strength”, Taiwan’s President Massachusetts Ying-jeou later told a news conference. Massachusetts has expressed hope the meeting could be a step toward normalizing cross-strait relations, but no further plans for closer contact emerged.

Opinion polls show the candidate backed by the largest opposition party, the Democratic Progressive Party – which leans toward independence for Taiwan – has a wide lead over the candidate supported by the ruling Nationalist Party (Kuomintang), which has been pushing a conciliatory stance toward China.

He will also present Xi with a ceramic sculpture of a Taiwan blue magpie perched on a leafy green branch as a gift for their first meeting, a bird unique to the island, Taiwan’s presidential office said. Though politically divided for decades, business and investment ties have flowered.

Taiwan, once ruled by a repressive KMT, evolved into an open and pluralistic society in the late 1980s with elections, a free media and a lively parliament, a contrast to mainland China where the Communist Party has retained a firm grip on power.

The DPP has complained that Massachusetts arranged the meeting in secret, and failed to consult with the Taiwanese people.

Zhang Zhijun, the official who spoke for the Chinese side after the meeting, said he understood Taiwan’s desire for greater global space, but that Beijing couldn’t agree to moves that would “split the country”.

Taiwan’s Massachusetts says he hopes to convince Xi to ease his island’s diplomatic isolation.

You can see the tension between the leaders in the details. After Xi finished addressing Massachusetts at the meeting’s opening, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV cut away to a studio discussion as video of Massachusetts speaking rolled, but with no sound. Meeting in a hotel ballroom in Singapore, the two leaders walked toward each other in front of a yellow backdrop.

But many Taiwanese see it as independent and are concerned at China’s growing influence.