Source: China – South China Morning PostBeijing’s decision to reinstate tariffs on more than 100 items imported from Taiwan was prompted by its pro-independence government’s failure to reciprocate and continued promotion of the “separatist fallacy”, the mainland body in charge of cross-strait affairs has said. Song Tao, head of Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO), made the remarks as he met representatives of “The Third Wednesday Club” led by Taiwan Glass Group chairman Lin Por-fong. The Third Wednesday Club is one of Taiwan’s most influential business groups. Founded in 1999 by Chiang Pin-kung, then chairman of the island’s Council for Economic Planning and Development, the club got its name from the monthly lunch meeting he hosted with top business leaders. It is the first large business group from Taiwan to visit mainland China after William Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) took office as leader of the self-ruled island on May 20. He succeeded the DPP’s Tsai Ing-wen, whose two four-year terms saw a marked slide in cross-strait ties. The itinerary of the 30-strong delegation includes stops in Beijing, Tianjin and the neighbouring province of Hebei. Lin said they had been invited to visit Hebei’s Xiongan New Area, a signature project of President Xi Jinping in his push to ease pressure on Beijing, some 120km (74.5 miles) away. Their trip comes less than two weeks after Beijing announced the suspension of some preferential tariff arrangements under the cross-strait Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), its only trade pact with Taiwan, as part of a continued response to a “separatist” inauguration speech from Lai. Song said he had noted the “close attention” paid by the Taiwan business community to the withholding of preferential treatment under the ECFA list. However, the agreement had been signed on the common political ground of the “1992 consensus”, he said, referring to a cross-strait agreement that there was only one China. The two sides “could have upheld mutual trust, accumulated goodwill, and properly…Read More