Coastal cities help build firm bridges across the Straits

Walking through the naval bases along the coast of Fujian, the mainland province closest to Taiwan, it is still possible to read some old, fading slogans painted on rocks and the sides of buildings extolling the need to remain vigilant against "secrets leaking from your lips".

They are a remnant of the late 1980s, when relations across the Straits were at a low point.

"The only reason they are still there is because they have not been painted over in recent years," explained Chen Yonglin, a regimental officer at Fujian naval base in Ningde.