He told a press conference at Kumamoto in Kyushu both Taiwan and China are WTO members and should negotiate and sign the ECFA as such. Taipei hopes to sign the ECFA with Beijing by early next year at the latest. Without it, Taiwan's economic survival will be threatened in an emerging free trade zone in Asia.

“If Taiwan is a sovereign, independent country, it should do so within the framework of the WTO,” said Lee, who declared his “two-China” doctrine in 1999 at the end of his last term as president.

Lee, who is scheduled to return to Taipei today, said Taiwan's most urgent task is to reduce unemployment. “It's 6.7 percent now, much higher than Japan's 5.7 percent,” he pointed out.

The new Cabinet to be formed by Wu Den-yih today has to do what it can to reduce Taiwan's record-high joblessness.

Accompanied by his wife, President Lee left for Tokyo on Saturday for a six-day tour of Japan.