Taiwan says spying allegations won\\\'t hurt China ties

TAIPEI, Aug 28 (AFP): Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou said Thursday ties with Beijing will not be affected by his government's probe into a former top negotiator on China policy accused of leaking state secrets.
"Cross-strait relations are like a big tree ... if a pest is discovered we need to find it and remove it so the tree can develop normally. One pest won't affect the development of cross-strait ties," Ma told reporters.
"Since I took office six years ago, cross-strait ties have been systemised step by step and normalised to a certain extent and won't be affected by this incident. Relevant contact and negotiations are still going on."
Ma was asked to comment on the case of Chang Hsien-yao, an ex-deputy minister at Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council who stepped down earlier this month and is under investigation over allegations he leaked confidential work-related information.