Analysis: Three key takeaways from Ma Ying-jeou's 11-day visit to the mainland

Former Chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party Ma Ying-jeou, together with a delegation of young people, returned to Taiwan region on Thursday after wrapping up an 11-day visit to the Chinese mainland.

In a trip said to be in search of their roots, Ma and the delegation traveled to south China's Guangdong Province, northwest China's Shaanxi Province and Beijing, visiting a former residence of Sun Yat-sen, founder of the KMT party and forerunner of China's democratic revolution, participating in a memorial ceremony of the Yellow Emperor, who was widely regarded as the progenitor of the Chinese nation, and visiting the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, among others.

Here are three key messages from the visit.

1. People on both sides of the Taiwan Straits are all Chinese.

During a meeting with Ma in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday afternoon, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, stressed that people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits are all Chinese.

"There are no knots that cannot be untied, no issues that cannot be discussed, and no force that can separate us," Xi told Ma and the delegation.

Differing systems do not alter the reality that both sides of the Straits belong to one China, and external interference cannot hold back the historical trend of national reunification, he said.

Ma said upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing "Taiwan independence" are the common political foundation for the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations.

People on both sides of the Straits belong to the same Chinese nation, and they should deepen exchanges and cooperation, jointly carry forward the Chinese culture, improve the well-being of compatriots on both sides and work together for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, Ma said.

Ni Yongjie, deputy director of the Shanghai Institute of Taiwan Studies, said during an interview with China Media Group (CMG) that the meeting between Xi and Ma, the first since the pair met in Singapore in 2015, was the climax of the visit.

Ma's trip to the mainland came at a sensitive time for the cross-Straits relations and was a rebuke to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities' confrontational policy toward the mainland, Ni said.

Hsieh Chih-chuan, a current affairs commentator in Taiwan, said the reception of Ma and the delegation has shown the mainland's kindness toward the island.

Through the visit, Ma has also conveyed to the mainland the mainstream public opinion of Taiwan, which is more than 60 percent of those in Taiwan want peace and exchanges, Hsieh told CMG.

2. Youth exchanges are essential to cross-Straits relations.

Xi on Wednesday also encouraged the young people from Taiwan to come to the mainland to pursue and fulfill their dreams.

Calling youth "the hope of the country and the future of the nation," Xi said that the mainland authorities will create better conditions and more opportunities for the development and success of young people from both sides of the Straits.

Ma and the 20 students visited Peking University in Beijing on Tuesday afternoon after a call at Sun Yat-sen University in south China's Guangzhou last week.

"To promote cross-Straits exchanges between students is the most important original intention of my visit and is also the goal of my efforts," Ma said at Peking University, which was the first university on the Chinese mainland to enroll students from Taiwan.

More than 260 students and 16 teachers from Taiwan currently study and work at Peking University, as well as many exchange students, visiting professors and visiting scholars from the island, according to Gong Qihuang, president of Peking University.

Peking University has established exchange and cooperation relationships with 17 universities and academic institutions in Taiwan and has launched student exchange programs with seven universities in the Taiwan region, Gong added.

Su Wei-en, a member of the youth delegation, said he was excited to reunite with some of the mainland students he met when they visited the Taiwan region last July.

Su said this was his first trip to the mainland and expressed hope that he could pursue a career in Beijing.

"I believe this is an era of the Chinese dream," he said. "We need to increase our knowledge and understanding of our nation's history and culture."

3. The tech strength of the mainland offers space for cross-Straits exchanges.

At the beginning of their visit, Ma and the delegation toured several high-tech companies headquartered in south China's Shenzhen, including Chinese drone maker DJI, technology conglomerate Tencent and new energy vehicle giant BYD.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, told media at a regular press briefing on Wednesday that members of the youth delegation showed great interest in an exchange program during their Shenzhen visit.

They responded enthusiastically and took out their phones to scan the QR code for registration, said Zhu.

Called "WAY! To Shenzhen," the program aims to offer internships and full-time jobs in Shenzhen to young people from Taiwan. According to the spokesperson, it has engaged more than 2,000 Taiwan young people since it was initiated 17 years ago.

Under the program, leading enterprises and institutions such as Tencent, BYD, and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange have provided more than 1,200 internship positions and more than 800 jobs since the start of 2023, Zhu said.

"We welcome Taiwan young people who would like to realize their dreams to participate in internship programs in different places on the mainland," she said.