July 11 (Bloomberg) -- Taiwan and China should cooperate on energy conservation and environmental protection, the Chairman of the island’s ruling party said in a speech today.

“Establishment of a cooperation mechanism, a common response to the Kyoto Protocol, a system to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and new-energy industry cooperation, I believe can contribute sustainable development of the cross-Strait environment,” Wu Poh-hsiung, chairman of Taiwan’s ruling Kuomintang, said in Changhsa, China, according to a transcript of the speech posted on the party’s Web site.

Wu is in China for the fifth round of annual talks that have helped ease nearly 60 years of tension between the two sides. The two-day summit will focus on development of cultural and educational links between Taiwan and China.

Taiwan’s cultural industries, including broadcasting, news publishing and music, could take advantage of greater cross- Strait links in the midst of a slowing domestic market, Wu said.

He also supports opening up Taiwan to mainland students as part of greater educational exchanges, according to the speech.

The two sides have been ruled separately since Chiang Kai- shek’s Kuomintang, or Nationalists, fled to the island after being defeated by Mao Zedong’s Communists in 1949. China regards Taiwan as part of its territory and has threatened to use force if necessary to reclaim it.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tim Culpan in Taipei at tculpan1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 11, 2009 00:44 EDT