The Department of Public Affairs of the Republic of China Presidential Office announced today that neither President Lee Teng-hui nor respective government agencies approves of the idea to engage in dialogue with Peking through the so-called "Track Two." As there is already a normal channel for communication between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, it has been the consistent stance of this government that cross-strait issues should be handled through the existing channel, it said.
The department made the above clarification in response to a report today by the local Chinese-language newspaper China Times. The report says: "According to former US Defense Secretary William Perry, President Lee Teng-hui and other government officials he met recently support the idea of undertaking "Track Two" dialogue with Peking, but their support is somehow shadowed by suspicion and caution."