On April 6, 2023, Ma Ying-jeou takes a group photo with teachers and students from the island of Taiwan and Fudan University in Shanghai. Ma, who was visiting the mainland, led Taiwan students to Fudan University in Shanghai. Photo: VCG

All issues at home can be properly resolved through consultation, and the Chinese mainland will facilitate exchanges and contacts between compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, a senior mainland Taiwan affairs official told former chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party Ma Ying-jeou on Thursday during a farewell dinner in Shanghai, the last stop of Ma's maiden visit to the mainland before his return to Taiwan island on Friday.

Analysts said that Ma's ancestral trip, which was actually far beyond ancestor worship, fully demonstrated the Taiwan compatriots' identification with the history and culture of the Chinese nation and created a new scenario for peaceful cross-Straits exchanges in the post-epidemic era. This is in stark contrast to Tsai Ing-wen's collusion with US politicians against the mainland and the destruction of cross-Straits relations.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, told Ma that his visit had positive significance for promoting exchanges between compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits and the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations. 

"We hope that people on both sides of the Straits will have more and frequent exchanges, and the mainland will create conditions and facilitate closer exchanges," Song said.

Ma's visit started with Honduras abandoning the Taiwan authorities and establishing diplomatic ties with the mainland, and it concluded almost at the same time as secessionist Taiwan regional leader Tsai Ing-wen's provocative meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which multiple Chinese authorities issued stern warnings against while vowing countermeasures. 

Song stressed that compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits are all Chinese people and should adhere to the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus.

All issues at home can be properly resolved through consultation, and no outsiders should interfere in them, said Song, noting that separatist acts must never be tolerated, and hooking up with external forces to pursue "Taiwan independence" is doomed to failure. 

Ma said the visit to the mainland made him deeply understanding that the two sides should cherish the 1992 Consensus as the common political foundation on which to resume exchanges and avoid war.

People on both sides of the Straits are all Chinese people and share the same ancestors, said Ma, calling on the two sides of the Straits to work together to promote peace, strive for cooperation and revitalize China.

Ma visited memorial sites and paid tribute to his ancestors who made sacrifices in the resistance war against Japanese invasion at most of his stops in the mainland, and Shanghai was not an exception. Before meeting with Song, Ma paid a visit to the Sihang Warehouse, a battle memorial hall located on the historic site of a four-day battle between 400 Chinese soldiers and Japanese invaders in 1937.

"From Ma's trip, we can see his sentiment and identification with the history and culture of the Chinese nation, which fully demonstrates the unbreakable historical and cultural connections between the island and the mainland," Wang Jianmin, a senior expert in cross-Straits affairs at Minnan Normal University in Fujian Province, told the Global Times on Thursday.

The COVID-19 epidemic, the DPP's secessionism manipulation, and the escalation of the strategic game between China and the US have interrupted cross-Straits exchanges. Ma's trip to the mainland was positive in promoting the development of cross-Straits relations, Wang said. 

Ma's visit will be conducive to further enhancing cross-Straits exchanges and cooperation and mutual understanding, Wang said. "This is in stark contrast to Tsai's confrontation against the mainland and being an enemy of the interests of the whole Chinese nation as a US pawn."

In Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, Chongqing and Shanghai, Ma received warm welcomes from local residents waving to greet him along the streets. However, more than 30 political groups on the island of Taiwan staged a protest against the "betrayal visit" of Tsai to the US and collusion with US politicians. The American anti-war organization Center for Political Innovation also protested against Tsai's transit in New York.

"We hope that Ma will continue to make greater contributions to cross-Straits relations and peace, and visit the mainland again at an appropriate time," Wang said. 

"We look forward to a higher level of exchanges between the leaders of the CPC and KMT, including meetings and exchanges between Ma and mainland leaders," Wang noted.