Chu Ends U.S. Visit：1992 Consensus is a "non-consensus consensus"
Summary report by Taiwan Weekly
Chairman Eric Chu of the Kuomintang (KMT) ended his nine-day visit to the United States and arrived in Taiwan on the morning of June 12. Regarding his reference to the 1992 Consensus as a "non-consensus consensus," Chu expressed at a press conference that the KMT’s position of defending the Republic of China, upholding democracy and freedom, opposing Taiwan independence and "one country, two systems" has never changed. He said that the spirit of the 1992 Consensus is to seek common ground while reserving differences. For the parts that do not agree on, the two sides have mutual respect and respective interpretation. It is hoped that in the future, the two sides of the Taiwan Strait can continue exchanges and dialogue, and work hard on differences.
When asked whether he had discussed with the party about shying from a pro-China stance in the United States. He emphasized that the KMT's position has been following the party charter. According to Chu, the KMT will always defend the Republic of China. The KMT is determined to defend democracy and freedom and build a peaceful, safe, and prosperous Taiwan. "Pro-American is pro-democracy and pro-freedom." According to Chu, the KMT will not accept any formula that harms the R.O.C., whether it is "Taiwan independence" or the "One Country, Two Systems” model advocated by some. It is stipulated in the KMT’s party charter.
In his remarks in Washington on June 6, Chu stated that the KMT insists upon "principled engagement" with Beijing but did not mention the "1992 Consensus" which had been cited by the KMT as the basis for cross-strait exchanges. In response to a media question, Chu said the 1992 Consensus was a "non-consensus consensus" that sparked discussions.
Chu continued by describing the 1992 Consensus as a kind of "creative ambiguity," wasting no time on the term "1992 Consensus" itself but instead focusing on problem-solving. The KMT hopes to solve problems for the people. Both sides of the Taiwan Strait could shelve differences and push forward bilateral relations. In this sense, the 1992 Consensus was still the foundation and key for engagement with Beijing.
When he visited the Department of State that day, Chu responded to reporters again, saying that the "creative ambiguity" of the 1992 Consensus is still what we need at present. Until a better alternative is available, we would continue to promote cross-strait exchanges in this way."
Chu added that the reason that the 1992 Consensus was not mentioned in the speech is that the speech was delivered not from the party’s own perspective.
The Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) of mainland China’s State Council issued a response to a reporter's question on June 9, regarding Chu's statement that the KMT is a pro-American party, "continues to fight against Communism, and competes with the Communist Party on political system and values," and that the "1992 Consensus" is a "non-consensus consensus," Spokesman Ma Xiaoguang of the TAO stressed that the "1992 Consensus" should not be arbitrarily distorted and any political party, group, and individual dedicated to developing cross-strait relations and maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait must keep a clear head and stay on the correct path and be on the right side of history, not the other way around.
Chu delivered remarks on the prospects of Taiwan at the Brookings Institution on June 6. This is his first-time explaining defense policy since assumed party chairman.
Chu said that after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, Taiwan has become the focus of discussion again, and there is no doubt that Taiwan faces a similar threat from Beijing; "The big question for the Taiwanese is, are we going to be a tipping point or a stabilizer?"
Chu stated, "Actively prepare for war and avoid war with all might." Strong defense and free alliances are indispensable to regional security. He proposed three key points of defense policy, including adjusting military investment to strengthen asymmetric combat capabilities and prioritizing the procurement of necessary and practical defense systems to face emergencies in the next five to 10 years, as well as establishing an inter-ministerial system for the mobilization of the reserves and reforming the conscription system.
Richard Bush, former chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and a visiting senior fellow at the Center for East Asian Studies at the Brookings Institution, was asked about the 1992 Consensus after the think tank event. He said that setting a premise for dialogue is very weird and shouldn't be. Beijing should be taking a more flexible approach to dealing with Taiwan now.
Bonny Lin, director of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, is curious about the so-called "principled engagement with Beijing" and concerned about how the KMT stabilizes the status quo across the Taiwan Strait in a complex situation. Chu has many problems to be solved.
Eric Chu, Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia, Director Alexander Huang of the KMT’s Department of International Affairs, and others visited the Department of State in the afternoon of the 6th to hold talks with officials for about 45 minutes. The topics covered security, economy, trade, technology, and energy.
Chu said that he directly told the United States that Taiwan hoped to join the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). About the newly launched US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, he placed great importance on the substance and hoped it was not just an initiative, but he did not see substantive issues of tariffs or market opening. This is not a bias against the United States. He needs to take a stand and his original intention was for the benefit of Taiwan.
On the morning of June 8, Chu re-opened the KMT’s representative office in the United States, which had been closed for 14 years. Dan Biers, director of the Department of State's Office of Taiwan Coordination attended the plague-unveiling ceremony. Chu said that the KMT representative office in the United States was closed after Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT became President in 2008. "We are back in Washington again." Hope to improve and strengthen communication with the United States.
The KMT Representative Office in the United States is on the 9th floor of 601 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, between the White House and the Capitol. Alexander Huang is concurrently serving as the party’s representative to the United States, while Eric Huang is serving as resident deputy representative.
A senior KMT official said that the United States never really considered the KMT as anti-U.S., but the DPP kept playing up the pro-China KMT wrong message. Chu's trip takes off the "pro-China" label, clarifying that the KMT is not anti-U.S., nor pro-China, the United States will hear all the voices of Taiwan, and this trip to the United States is considered a great success.
From:
https://udn.com/news/story/6809/6369313
https://udn.com/news/story/6656/6381573
https://udn.com/news/story/6656/6380169
https://www.chinatimes.com/realtimenews/20220609001620-260409
https://www.chinatimes.com/realtimenews/20220609000793-260407