By Chris Wang / Staff reporter
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) is scheduled to leave for a four-day visit to Thailand on Thursday to meet with Taiwanese businesspeople and review Taiwan’s economic and investment policy toward the Southeast Asian region, the DPP announced yesterday.
Trade and investment will be high on the agenda for the trip against the backdrop of a cross-strait service trade agreement recently signed with Beijing, which is expected to negatively affect Taiwanese businesses and increase the nation’s economic dependence on China, DPP Department of International Affairs director Liu Shih-chung (劉世忠) told reporters at a briefing.
The trip will be Su’s third overseas visit this year and the fourth since he assumed the party helm in May last year, Liu said.
The DPP chairman visited Japan in February, Singapore in April and the US and Canada in June.
In related news, Su yesterday reiterated his call for President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to order an immediate halt to the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in Gongliao District (貢寮), New Taipei City (新北市), and downplayed his differences with former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) over her urging Ma to hold a national affairs conference.
Tsai has called on Ma to convene a conference to deal with a wide range of issues that have divided society, but Su has been tight-lipped about whether he would support Tsai’s appeal.
“Ma would create a positive atmosphere for communication between the opposition and the ruling party by ordering the [power plant’s] suspension,” Su said, adding that he and Tsai shared the same views on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant.