Former KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou to visit Chinese mainland: spokesperson

BEIJING, June 11 (Xinhua) -- Ma Ying-jeou, former chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party, will visit the Chinese mainland from June 14 to 27, a mainland spokesperson said Wednesday.

Ma will lead a delegation of Taiwan youth on a visit to the provinces of Fujian and Gansu, said Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council.

The delegation will attend the 17th Straits Forum in Fujian. In Gansu, they will participate in a commemorative ceremony paying tribute to Fuxi -- a legendary ancestor of the Chinese nation, and attend activities for jointly promoting Chinese culture across the Taiwan Strait.

"We welcome the visit and will make proper arrangements and provide necessary convenience," said Zhu.

Zhu noted the importance of cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation amid the complex, grave situation in the Taiwan Strait. "As always, the mainland welcomes people of all walks of life and the vast number of compatriots in Taiwan to visit and conduct exchanges with the mainland, and join hands with the mainland to carry forward fine traditional Chinese culture and contribute to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." ■