Taiwan Minister Makes First Lai-Era APEC Visit to China — SkimNews
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- Hung Sun-han left Taiwan on Sunday for Nanjing to attend an APEC human resources ministerial meeting, marking the first ministerial-level visit of President Lai Ching-te's administration to China.
- The trip comes as China hosts APEC this year, with a leaders summit scheduled for November in Shenzhen; Beijing has rejected repeated offers of talks with Lai, calling him a "separatist."
- China's military operates around Taiwan on an almost daily basis, and Beijing views Taiwan as one of its provinces rather than a country.
- Hung previously served as a lawmaker for Lai's ruling Democratic Progressive Party and was an outspoken advocate on human rights in Hong Kong and Tibet.
- Taiwan participates in APEC under the name "Chinese Taipei," though China typically uses "China Taipei" despite objections from Taiwan's government.
- Taiwan's president does not attend the APEC leaders summit to avoid political problems, instead sending former officials or business leaders such as Morris Chang, the founder of chip giant TSMC.
Why it matters: Hung — a former DPP lawmaker and vocal Hong Kong and Tibet human rights advocate — traveling to mainland China for a Beijing-hosted APEC event underscores how APEC remains one of the few institutional channels for Taiwan-China contact even as Beijing rejects Lai's outreach and runs near-daily military operations around the island. Taiwan has not yet named its representative for the November Shenzhen leaders summit.
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