China and Taiwan begins new relationship.

China and Taiwan began talking for the first time in almost a decade on Thursday, though the two often bitter diplomatic rivals are focusing on just a few practical issues and avoiding sensitive political problems.

Relations between Beijing and the self-ruled island it views as a renegade province have see-sawed between aggression, attempts at rapprochement and snubs for almost six decades.

 

China and Taiwan signed a landmark deal on Friday to launch regular flights between the long-time rivals as politics was put aside in favour of practicalities in the first such talks in almost a decade.

Apart from special holidays, there have been no regular direct flights since 1949

As many as 3,000 China tourists, the number Ma first proposed, could come to the island per day, Taiwan media said.

China's Xinhua news agency said service would include 36 return flights for every weekend, from Friday to Monday, and the number would increase according to demand.

Mainland and Taiwan airlines would operate 18 flights each.

"It's a very positive step forward," said Taiwan businesswoman Natasha Lai. "Before, we were not able to travel directly for business or pleasure. Now to see our sentiment reciprocated on the other side is great."

Talks between China and Taiwan had been broken off for almost a decade, with Beijing refusing to deal with pro-independence then President Cheng Shui-bian.

 

Ma hopes letting Chinese tourists visit can boost the island's economy, while opening direct flights will save time and money for the hundreds of thousands of Taiwanese who live and work in China and now have to fly via Hong Kong or Macau.