Taiwan's Chen hopes to meet Hu at APEC

Taiwan's Chen hopes to meet Hu at APEC

Reuters, Taipei

Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian on Friday urged South Korea, host
of this year's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit,
to let him attend the meeting so he can meet his counterpart from
rival China.

Chen's request is likely to be rejected. Beijing, which views
self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province, has shown no sign of
being willing to engage the island's pro-independence leader.

Because of Chinese objections, no Taiwan political leader has
yet attended an APEC summit. The island participates as an
"economy" under the title "Chinese Taipei".

"I am certain under the leadership of South Korean President
Roh, he can help facilitate a meeting between leaders on both
sides of the Strait in Korea, where an APEC summit will be held
in November," Chen told South Korean diplomats.

"Reconciliation and dialog across the Taiwan Strait is the
common expectation of the international community and the APEC
summit is the most appropriate occasion for leaders of the two
sides to make contact and talk," Chen said.

Chen has earlier suggested meeting Chinese President Hu Jintao
in a third country, but Beijing said any such meeting should be
held on Chinese soil.

This year Hu met leaders from Taiwan's three opposition
parties who favor closer ties with the mainland. Analysts saw
this as part of a divide-and-conquer strategy to sideline Chen.

Taipei and Beijing have been diplomatic and military rivals
since their split at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949.
Beijing insists that the rest of the world treat Taiwan as a
Chinese province.

Taiwan boycotted the APEC summit in Shanghai in 2001 after
China refused to send an invitation to Chen's envoy, former vice
president Li Yuan-zu.

China had seen Li as a political choice and demanded Taipei
send a representative with an economic portfolio.

For the past three years, President Chen has sent Nobel
laureate Lee Yuan-tseh to attend APEC on his behalf.