Taiwan talks hinted at

Talks with Taipei could happen once the island's "leader-elect", Ma Ying-jeou, takes office next month, a spokesman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office said yesterday.

When asked at a regular press conference whether conditions would be right after May 20 - when Ma takes office - for talks, Li Weiyi said: "Everyone can make their own judgment about that."

Last weekend, President Hu Jintao held a meeting with the Taiwan-based Cross-Straits Common Market Foundation chairman and Ma's deputy Vincent Siew on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia, at which both sides said they wanted to start talks as soon as possible.