Security on alert for island talks

A senior Taiwan negotiator yesterday pledged to ensure the safety and dignity for Beijing's top envoy when he visits the island for the upcoming cross-Straits talks.

Chen Yunlin, president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and Chiang Pin-kung, chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), will hold their highly anticipated discussions from Dec 21-25 in the island city of Taichung.

The frame and scope of the discussions were finalized by Kao Koong-lian, SEF vice-chairman, and Zheng Lizhong, ARATS vice-president, who met yesterday in Fuzhou, capital of East China's Fujian province.