China urges Taiwan to maintain close ties despite pro-Beijing party losses

China has urged Taiwan to maintain close ties in the face of the defeat of Taiwan's pro-Beijing ruling party in the recent polls.

Taiwan's premier Jiang Yi-huah announced his resignation on Saturday after his party lost a number of strongholds in Saturday's elections.

According to Mashable, the election losses could jeopardize six years of talks with China that have led to 21 agreements, helping to lift Taiwan's half-trillion-dollar economy, while raising Beijing's hopes for political reunification.

Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office said that China was hopeful "compatriots across the Strait would cherish hard-won fruits of cross-strait relations and jointly safeguard and continue to push forward peaceful development of cross-strait relations".

Jiang's resignation came after he lost the first election since protests erupted over a controversial trade deal with mainland China.

The ruling party Kuomintang was able to garner only 40 percent of the vote, while the Democratic Progressive Party won with more than 47 percent of the vote.