Mainland, Taiwan to allow routine direct flights, jointly crack down on crimes

Source: Xinhua | 04-26-2009 14:56

NANJING, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Top negotiators from the mainland and Taiwan reached consensus Sunday on routine direct flights across the Taiwan Straits, joint crack-down on crimes and financial cooperation.

Regular flights will ease the current shortage of cross-straits flights by increasing the number of flights each week from 108 to 270 and adding six terminals, according to the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF).

Chen Yunlin, president of ARATS, and Chiang Pin-kung, chairman of SET, also agreed at Sunday's meeting on jointly cracking down on major crimes involving kidnapping, weapons, drugs and human trafficking, cross-border organized crimes, and economic crimes involving fraud, money laundering, forging or falsifying currencies and securities.

The two sides reach an agreement on promoting financial organizations from the mainland and Taiwan to set up branches in each other's side and continue to negotiate on the admittance of financial organizations and related businesses.

The two sides also agreed to jointly set up a system for financial supervision and management.

In addition, they agreed to gradually set up a currency clearing system. Commercial banks are allowed to offer cash exchange services.

The two sides will also cooperate in developing cash anti-counterfeit technology.

The ARATS and the SEF planned to hold the fourth round of talks in Taipei in the later half of 2009.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei