China snubs Taiwan's president

BEIJING - China said Wednesday that its new invitation to members of Taiwan&#39;s ruling party to visit the mainland doesn&#39;t extend to the island&#39;s president, Chen Shui-bian. <br> <br> Chinese officials stressed that the invitation, announced by Vice Premier Qian Qichen last Thursday, wasn&#39;t a change in policy toward Taiwan, which Beijing claims as part of its territory. <br> <br> They insisted that Chen must accept Beijing&#39;s insistence that Taiwan and the mainland are one country before the two sides can discuss trade, travel and other issues. <br> <br> Taiwanese had welcomed Qian&#39;s comments as a conciliatory gesture toward Chen&#39;s Democratic Progressive Party, with whom China had refused to have any contact. <br> <br> ``The &#39;one-China principle&#39; is our bottom line,&#39;&#39; said Zhang Mingqing, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office. <br> <br> Taiwan and the mainland have been ruled separately since 1949, and Beijing has accused Chen of plotting to make a formal separation permanent. <br> <br> Qian said last week that only a ``small minority&#39;&#39; in Chen&#39;s party shared such views and that other members were welcome to visit China. <br> <br> Zhang said Wednesday that Chen and his vice president, Annette Lu, ``do not belong to the broad masses of DPP members.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Chen has said he won&#39;t take steps toward formal independence such as changing Taiwan&#39;s constitution, but says uniting with the mainland isn&#39;t the only other option. <br> <br> In Taipei, DPP secretary general Wu Nai-jen denied that there was any split within the party over views about Taiwanese independence. <br> <br> ``Taiwan is an independent and sovereign nation and all government leaders are elected,&#39;&#39; Wu said. ``All members of the DPP share this basic position, from President Chen on down to party rank and file.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Zhang said Qian&#39;s comments showed China ``really understands, really respects, really cares for&#39;&#39; the Taiwanese public. <br> <br> Zhang said those DPP members he defined as mainstream would not have to accept any preconditions for visiting China. But he said China would not receive them formally in their status as DPP members due to the party constitution&#39;s support for Taiwan independence. <br> <br> Zhang did not comment directly on a statement Monday by Richard Bush, a senior U.S. official in charge of Taiwan policy, that China should not raise political demands as a precondition for talks. <br> <br> Washington has pledged not to challenge Beijing&#39;s contention that Taiwan was part of China but says the issue is for the two sides to resolve.

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