Taiwan's top negotiator with China to resign
CNA 2012-09-19 18:08
Chiang Pin-kung, second left, plays dice with his Chinese counterpart Chen Yunlin, center, in Kinmen. (Photo/Lee Chin-sheng)
The chairman of Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation, Chiang Pin-kung, announced Wednesday that he will tender his resignation from his post in a board meeting planned for next week.
Taiwan's top negotiator with China made the announcement at a press conference held in Taipei after his return from Kinmen, where he bade farewell to his Chinese counterpart, Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits President Chen Yunlin, who had just concluded a 10-day visit to Taiwan.
The SEF is scheduled to hold the board meeting Sept. 27, in which Chiang's deputy, Kao Koong-liang, is also expected to tender his resignation.
It is expected that the SEF board of directors and supervisors will name their new chairman in the meeting.
No reasons were given for the resignations.
Chiang, aged 79, was elected as SEF chairman on May 26, 2008. Since then, he has held eight rounds of talks with Chen and forged a total of 18 cross-strait agreements, including the landmark Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement.
The SEF is a semi-official intermediary body authorized by the government of Taiwan to deal with China affairs in the absence of official ties between the two sides.
