Top political advisor elected head of Chinese council for reunification

Yu Zhengsheng, China's top political advisor, was elected chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification (CCPPNR) on Monday.

Peace and the one-China principle are the roads to realizing the reunification of China, said Yu, at the ninth conference of the board of directors of the CCPPNR.

The mainland will actively promote the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and firmly fight "Taiwan independence", said Yu, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Political Bureau, and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

He called for compatriots from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and overseas Chinese to work together for reunification.

"At this critical stage for cross-Strait relations now, we should have a clear understanding of the whole situation and be confident of the future," he said.

More efforts should be made to expand exchanges and create a favorable international environment for the cause, he said.