TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said he intends to go ahead with the Taipei-Shanghai Forum on Tuesday (Dec. 17).
Taipei is scheduled to host this year’s event, with Shanghai Deputy Mayor Hua Yuan (華源) leading the Chinese delegation. The annual forum began in 2010, with the two cities alternating hosting the event, per CNA.
This agenda for the forum includes the signing of memorandums of understanding on smart medical care. Also, a pre-arranged red panda exchange between Taipei Zoo and Shanghai Zoological Park was expected to be undertaken.
However, provocative military actions undertaken by the Chinese government have led the central government's Mainland Affairs Council to intervene. MAC has not ruled out canceling the forum.
Chiang attended the forum for the first time last year, shortly after taking office, leading a delegation of 100 people to China. Shanghai is expected to send a 102-person delegation in a sign of reciprocity.
Chiang said the forum is one of the only platforms enabling cross-strait exchanges. He said the forum was more necessary than ever given increasingly tense relations with China.
Moreover, Chiang implored Taiwan authorities to be more confident of their “democratic resilience." He said Taiwan is often regarded as a high-risk area geopolitically.
Taipei City Government Spokesperson Yin Wei (殷瑋) said it has yet to receive information from the central government or MAC about the suspension of the forum.