Amid rising China-Taiwan tension, Beijing sends team to Taipei for pacts on healthcare, red panda

A group of Chinese politicians arrived in Taiwan on Monday for a rare visit, as relations between Beijing and Taipei remain fraught.

China considers Taiwan part of its territory and in recent years has ramped up military and political pressure on the self-ruled island to assert its claims.

Beijing severed high-level communications with Taipei in 2016 when former president Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party, which rejects China’s claims over Taiwan, took office.

Deputy head of Shanghai’s Taiwan Affairs Office Li Xiaodong and Shanghai Vice Mayor Hua Yuan arrived in Taipei on Monday for an annual forum hosted this year by the Taipei City government, which is led by the Beijing-friendly main opposition party Kuomintang.

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They are part of a delegation of around 90 people attending the one-day event on Tuesday, which the Taipei City Mayor’s Office said will see agreements signed on healthcare and red panda exchanges.

The Chinese delegation has agreed to keep a “low profile” throughout their trip, Taiwan’s top China policy body, the Mainland Affairs Council, said.

The gathering comes after Taiwanese officials said China last week held its biggest maritime drills in years, with around 90 ships deployed from near the southern islands of Japan to the South China Sea.

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The vessels simulated attacks on foreign ships and practised blockading sea routes, a Taiwan security official said previously.

Beijing did not confirm the drills and its defence ministry did not say whether the manoeuvres had taken place when asked at a press conference on Friday.