Chen Shui-bian, Taiwan's president, moved to halt the island's weakening influence in the face of China's growing clout yesterday by removing unification as the ultimate national goal and terminating a body charged with working towards it.

Mr Chen said the National Unification Council, a body in charge of working towards unification with China, which has been defunct since Mr Chen came into office, would "cease to function". Guidelines set by the council that define unification as a national goal would "cease to apply".