Cross-Straits ties

Political disputes should not stand in the way of a peaceful relationship between the mainland and Taiwan.

The two sides made this clear in the past two days when their negotiators signed agreements on issues easier to handle. They included weekend chartered flights and mainland tourists' travelling to Taiwan.

The "economy-before-politics" approach, as chairman of mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) Chen Yunlin coined, displayed the two sides' eagerness and willingness to improve cross-Straits relations.