Cross-Strait exchanges will have bright future says spokeswoman

The Chinese mainland will take proactive measures to promote exchanges and cooperation in various fields between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, including tourism, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remark at a press conference in Beijing in response to inquiries about the mainland's consideration of allowing residents to travel to Taiwan.

Zhu said that despite some obstacles to cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation made by Taiwan authorities, with the joint efforts of people on both sides, cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation will have a bright future.

According to her, the number of people traveling between East China's Fujian province and Taiwan has significantly increased this year. Since the beginning of this year, the number of Taiwan residents obtaining five-year Taiwan compatriot travel permits in Fujian has reached 90,000, a 56.4 percent increase compared to the previous period. The number of Taiwan compatriots obtaining one-time travel permits has doubled to 11,000 compared to the same period last year.

The number of Taiwan residents entering Fujian ports has reached 230,000 this year, a 2.6-fold increase. Additionally, 54,000 Taiwan residents have enjoyed convenient custom clearance services when traveling to Fujian, and over 4,400 cross-Strait vessels have benefited from easier customs clearance services, she said.