KMT Chair Cheng Li-wun Holds Beijing Press Conference — Day 5; Defends Xi Meeting as 'Deterrence Through Dialogue'; Pledges Cross-Strait Resumption If KMT Returns in 2028

On April 11, 2026 — Day 5 of her April 7–12 mainland China visit — KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun held a press conference with Chinese and foreign journalists at the China World Hotel in Beijing, introducing the April 10 Xi Jinping meeting and answering reporters' questions. Cheng described her trip to Beijing as part of a strategy of 'deterrence through dialogue,' arguing that engagement with Beijing reduces the risk of miscalculation and armed conflict across the Taiwan Strait. She pledged that the KMT, if it returns to power in the 2028 Taiwan presidential election, would seek to resume broad cross-strait exchanges, including tourism, student exchanges, and political engagement, which have been frozen under the DPP's Lai Ching-te administration. Cheng's delegation also visited the Tsinghua University High School to observe AI education programs. The Taipei Times (April 11 front page) covered the visit under the headline 'KMT's Cheng Li-wun meets Xi Jinping in China,' noting the historic nature of the first CPC-KMT party leader summit in nearly a decade. A Taipei Times analysis column by 'Donovan' examined why Cheng 'is betting on the past,' arguing the visit carries high domestic political risk as Taiwan's DPP frames it as legitimizing Beijing's pressure while simultaneously blocking Taiwan's defense budget. The visit ends April 12. 33 days remain to the scheduled Trump-Xi Beijing summit (May 14–15, 2026).