Taiwan's two main opposition parties said after merger talks yesterday that they would instead focus on cooperation due to unresolved legal issues.

Speaking after a four-hour meeting with James Soong, head of the People First Party (PFP), Kuomintang (KMT) chair Ma Ying-jeou said he was optimistic and hoped similar talks in the future would push their relations forward.

Soong said he and Ma had earnest and in-depth discussions on the possible merger and cooperation, and they agreed to focus on cooperation to maintain the Pan-Blue alliance in Taiwan's legislature before resolving unspecified legal problems.

They also reaffirmed commitments to facilitate the realization of "three direct links" between Taiwan and the mainland, investigate corruption cases involving senior government officials, continue to probe the "March 19 shooting incident," and propose cooperation plans for future election campaigns.

The KMT and PFP are the two largest in Taiwan's Pan-Blue opposition, talk of a merger has increased since the December 3 city and county chief elections in which the KMT won 14 of 23 constituencies and 50.95 percent of ballots cast.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led by Chen Shui-bian won in six constituencies with 41.95 percent of the vote.

Before the meeting, Soong told reporters the elections had shown the public had no confidence in the DPP and were expecting the PFP and KMT to merge.

(Xinhua News Agency, December 13, 2005)