Taiwan tourist office opens in Beijing

Beijing - Taipei formally opened its first office on the Chinese mainland on Tuesday morning, signaling a milestone in improved cross-Straits relations following decades of hostilities that saw little official contact.

The opening of the Beijing office of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (TSTA) follows two years of trade and transit talks that have eased suspicions while increasing the urgency of communication on travel-related issues.

Beijing will open a counterpart office in Taipei later this week as part of reciprocal steps aimed at opening tourism links between the two.