A second round of cross-Straits negotiations on an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) will be held in Taipei in the first half of March, a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said yesterday.

According to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the two sides will negotiate the trade pact in several stages.

The first stage will focus on urgent issues stemming from the inauguration of the China-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN+1) free trade area, with the goal of including the most-affected sectors on early harvest lists, compiled by Taiwan and the mainland, of items that will be first to be covered by the ECFA, the official said.

The two sides hope to sign a simple framework agreement within the first half of this year before further negotiations on other details, he said.

The official also said the MAC is not planning to put issues regarding an office swap between the two quasi-official intermediary bodies on either side of the Taiwan Straits on the agenda of any cross-Straits talks in the immediate future.

With Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou's government entering its mid-term, the official said, the MAC is conducting a mid-term work review accordingly.

"We are asking all government agencies to offer opinions and submit new initiatives to help us compile a new agenda for cross-Straits negotiations in the coming years," said the official.

Acknowledging that "not so simple" topics will likely emerge in future cross-Straits talks, the official said negotiations are likely to become increasingly difficult.

Nevertheless, he went on to say, the talks will remain in the economic, trade and general civilian exchange domains, without touching on sensitive political issues.

On the issue of a possible swapping of offices between Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and the mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS), the official said the issue is a subject for study, but will not make the agenda of cross-Straits talks for the time being.

Noting that the mainland is constantly changing, the official said the MAC will strengthen its research on mainland-related subjects this year.

He said the MAC needs more staff to expand its research capacity and get more "truthful or genuine information to serve as a reference" in its mainland policy formulation.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 03/04/2010 page4)