Beijing meeting suggests warming China-Taiwan ties

BEIJING (Reuters) - A senior Taiwan politician met Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing on Tuesday, in the latest step to try to forge closer ties between Beijing and the self-ruled island it claims as sovereign territory.

Lien Chan, who is the China-friendly Nationalist Party's (KMT's) honorable chairman, and previously a Taiwan vice president, met Hu for the fourth time since 2005, Taiwan media said.

Xinhua announced the meeting with no details of what was said, but China refused to deal with the government of outgoing President Chen Shui-bian who favors formal independence from China.

China has claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 and vowed to bring the island back under mainland rule, by force if necessary.

Taiwan President-elect Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT, who takes office on May 20, favors better business ties with the mainland, including more direct flights, more Chinese tourists and normalized trade ties.

Earlier this month, Hu and Taiwan Vice President-elect Vincent Siew shook hands and talked one-on-one for about 20 minutes in what many analysts saw as a breakthrough that could thaw relations.

The World Health Organisation has rejected yet another bid for membership from Taiwan, an application that was seen as a final jab at China by Chen, officials in Taipei said on Tuesday.

Taiwan, recognized by just a handful of countries around the world, has applied for the past 11 years for membership in the 193-member Geneva-based organization that updates members on healthcare issues and helps handle disease outbreaks.

(Reporting by Nick Macfie; Editing by Valerie Lee)