KMT denies Beijing leaning on partyDENY, DEFLECT, DISSEMBLE: The party has denied claims that Beijing has made crippling the special defense budget a condition of future meetingsBy Lin Hsin-han and Esme Yeh / Staff reporter, with staff writerChinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) yesterday denied allegations that Beijing asked the party “to increase mutual trust” by boycotting the defense budget bill, saying they were fabricated statements. Beijing reportedly asked the KMT to “take concrete actions” — such as hindering the passage of the defense budget — to resume the KMT-Chinese Communist Party forum and facilitate a potential meeting between KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen attends an event in Taipei yesterday. The Cabinet last year approved a NT$1.25 trillion defense budget bill with an eight-year span and sent it to the legislature for review. That fact is aligned with media reports, he said, calling on the KMT to stop boycotting the defense budget bill and put it on the agenda.
