Taiwan's Kuomintang (KMT) chair Cheng Li-wun will arrive in Shanghai on April 7 for a six-day trip to mainland China, traveling by train to Nanjing to pay respects at Sun Yat-sen's mausoleum. A KMT press statement issued on Tuesday night described Sun Yat-sen as the founder of the Republic of China—Taiwan's formal name—and a symbol of the shared past between Taiwan and the mainland. Cheng stated that the party has an inescapable historical mission to promote peaceful cross-strait dialogue.
The Kuomintang (KMT) issued a press statement on Tuesday night announcing that Cheng Li-wun will arrive in Shanghai on April 7 before taking a train to Nanjing in eastern Jiangsu province. She is scheduled to visit the Sun Yat-sen mausoleum park the following morning and return to Shanghai by train in the afternoon.
The itinerary for the remaining four days has not been disclosed, though she is expected to visit Beijing and meet Xi Jinping.
At a KMT meeting on Wednesday, Cheng said the party had “an inescapable historical mission, to prove that at critical moments, the two sides of the [Taiwan] Strait can absolutely engage in peaceful dialogue and exchanges, thereby laying the foundation for creating peaceful and stable cross-strait relations, achieving regional stability, and promoting global peace.”
The trip is described as a landmark visit, with Sun Yat-sen—founder of the Republic of China, Taiwan's formal name—serving as a symbol of the shared history between Taiwan and the mainland.