The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said on Wednesday that with common efforts across the Taiwan Straits, both sides can overcome challenges like COVID-19, and embark on a path of integrated development.

In the regular press conference, spokesperson Zhu Fenglian praised Eric Chu Li-luan, the newly elected chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party and other KMT candidates for sticking to the 1992 Consensus and opposing the concept of "Taiwan Independence."

She acknowledged that the cross-Strait relations have a long way to go.

"The situation across the Taiwan Straits is complex and grim. All Chinese should work together and move forward together. We hope that the Chinese Kuomintang could stick with us on common political ground and stick to the overall national interest and well-being of people across the Straits," she said.  

The spokesperson responded to a question on Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) leader opposing the mainland's decision to suspend imports of Taiwan's sugar apple and wax apple.

Zhu said this is justified as the mainland customs authorities have on numerous occasions this year detected quarantine hazardous organisms in the two kinds of fruits imported from the region.

"The DPP authority politicized the necessary suspension measures and defamed the mainland. They are not even thinking about the interests of the Taiwan rural working class. Instead, they're trying to stir up emotions of Taiwan compatriots and cause confrontation between both sides," she said.

The spokesperson continued to firmly oppose to the island's application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

She said that the prerequisite of Taiwan's participation into the regional economic cooperation must be the one-China policy.

The spokesperson also praised efforts by Taiwan compatriots to fight against the COVID-19 outbreak in southeast China's Fujian Province, saying that this reflects the ties of blood across the Taiwan Straits.

(Cover: Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, speaks at the regular press conference, Beijing, China, September 29, 2021. /CGTN)