Taiwan

As widely anticipated, President Ma Ying-jeou was elected chairman of the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party on July 26. Ma lost this position back in 2007 following a corruption indictment while he was mayor of the Taipei, although he was later exculpated. The return to the helm of the KMT will allow Ma to consolidate his power, and should thus facilitate the rapprochement with China. Indeed, although he is likely to tread carefully, given lingering anxieties among the island's pro-independence movement, he is now technically allowed to visit the mainland, albeit in a non-governmental role.

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