"We have no reason to be pessimistic about the (cross-strait service trade) agreement or to be afraid of its impact. The government will try its best to minimize possible damage and maximize the business opportunities the agreement can create."

"Providing compensation (to the victims of White Terror) will not write off the incidents once and for all."

"In 1992, the two sides (Taiwan and Mainland China) reached a consensus that each side would verbally express their adherence to the one China principle."

"Our relationship with mainland China is very subtle. We don’t have a state-to-state relationship and we do not view mainland China as a foreign state."

"We know that Hong Kong, after the handover to mainland China, has been trying for universal suffrage … We know that mainland China has made promises and we're of course pleased to see Hong Kong changing in this direction."

"The timing and conditions are ripe for the two sides to set up representative offices (ARATS in Taiwan and SEF in Mainland China). There are no political implications to the plan and the functions of the offices will be basically neutral."

"The people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are all Chinese by ethnicity. Cross-strait relations are not international relations. Each side acknowledges the existence of "one China", but maintains its own interpretation based on the 1992 Consensus."

"It is impossible for us to recognize (mainland China) as another nation within our (Republic of China) territory."

"They (opposition) say we are selling out Taiwan and that we lost something, but they never say what exactly we have lost."

"Not everyone understands this. But we (ROC government) have done what needed to be done, and we will keep doing so until the very end."

"Traditional Chinese characters carry both cultural significance and artistic values and promoting these characters has nothing to do with any political stance. It's very important for us not to sacrifice the characters for tourism."

"We must actively engage in regional economic integration, as Taiwan is an island with few natural resources and a relatively small economy. Taiwan had signed very few free-trade agreements in the past. How can we not be in a hurry to catch up?"

"There should be no civil war among the Chinese people and no friction across the Taiwan Strait."

"It is not a country-to-country relation between the two sides of the Strait."

"The common ground is that both sides belong to one China, and as for the differences, we will squarely face reality and put aside disputes."

"We are delighted to see that some political parties (e.g. DPP) have decided to change their approach and start a dialogue with mainland China. More communication between Taiwan and the Mainland can only help to reduce differences within Taiwan and achieve consensus, so the KMT welcomes such developments."

"I am more than seventy years old. Having lived under different regimes, from Japanese colonialism to Taiwan’s recovery, I have greatly experienced the miseries of the Taiwanese people. In the period of Japanese colonialism, a Taiwanese would be punished by being forced to kneel out in the sun for speaking Tai-yü. The situation was the same when Taiwan was recovered: my son, Hsien-wen, and my daughter-in-law, Yüeh-yün, often wore a dunce board around their necks in the school as punishment for speaking Tai-yü... [Taiwanese peoples’] lives are influenced by history. I think the most miserable people are Taiwanese, who have always tried in vain to get their heads above the water. This was the Taiwanese situation during the period of colonialism; it was not any different after Taiwan’s recovery [that is, the rule of the Chiang-era KMT]. I have deep feelings about this."

"Don't think that because many Taiwanese came from China, Taiwan is a part of China."