Taiwan-China ties at crossroads

Tsai Ing-wen, the candidate of the pro-independence main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), is poised to become president of Taiwan, forcing China and Taiwan to redefine cross-strait ties

1949:

Chiang Kai-shek’s

1979:

U.S. establishes diplomatic

Kuomintang (KMT) nationalists

form own government

in Taiwan after

Mao Zedong’s

communists take

power in China

relations with China but passes law

requiring defence aid to Taiwan

1993:

Envoys from both sides

hold first high-level official talks

1996:

China fires missiles near

Taiwan in attempt to influence

island’s first presidential elections

1970s

2000:

Nationalists

1980s

lose presidency

with election of

DPP candidate

2005:

Beijing

1990s

passes law that makes

secession by Taiwan illegal,

at risk of military action

Chen Shui-bian

2008:

High-level talks

2000s

resume after Nationalist

candidate

Ma Ying-jeou

is elected president

2010:

China and Taiwan

sign preferential trade pact

2015:

China's President

Xi Jinping

and Taiwan’s Ma

2010s

hold historic talks in

Singapore – first meeting

of two sides’ leaders

since 1949

Jan 16, 2016: Tsai Ing-wen, frontrunner in

presidential election, is set to become most

powerful female politician in Chinese world