Quotable

Over the past six years, Taiwan and the Chinese mainland have moved from confrontation to rapprochement, from antagonism to consultation, with this year's Zhang-Wang meetings marking a further step forward in cross-Straits cooperation."

Ma Ying-jeou, the Taiwan leader, said in a speech on Friday describing how two historic meetings this year between Zhang Zhijun, head of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, and Wang Yu-chi, Taiwan's mainland affairs chief, show significant progress in cross-Straits ties.