(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-06-12 19:09

BEIJING - The Chinese mainland and Taiwan began negotiations on weekend chartered flights here Thursday, five years after the service was adopted for major festivals.

Sun Yafu and Li Bingcai, vice chairmen of the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS), discussed the issue with Kao Koong-lian, vice chairman and secretary-general of Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF).

The talks followed the meeting between ARATS Chairman Chen Yunlin and his Taiwan counterpart Chiang Pin-kun on Thursday morning.

The two sides continued discussion on Thursday afternoon about the issue of mainland tourists traveling to Taiwan.

"I expect the two sides will reach common understanding on the two issues so that agreements can be signed Friday," said Sun before the meeting.

The two agreements, attracting great attention from residents on both sides, could be conducive to the further development of cross-Strait relations, he said.

"It was a good beginning that the ARATS and SEF resumed talks," he said. "We will push ahead the negotiation to settle problems between the two sides with sincerity."

Kao expressed similar expectation with Sun that the two sides would reach the agreements on the two issues. "This will bring the cross-Strait relations into a new stage."

In 2003, the mainland and Taiwan agreed to offer chartered flights during the Spring Festival, China's major festival for family reunions. This was to help Taiwan business people working on the mainland return home.

That year, the flights had to land in Hong Kong or Macao en route and only Taiwan airline companies could operate the flights.

The service suspended in 2004 due to the disagreement over operation details between the two sides. They resumed a year later after an agreement was reached to allow both mainland and Taiwan airlines to operate direct non-stop flights. The mainland destinations also increased from originally just Shanghai to include Beijing and Guangzhou.

Since 2006, all Taiwan residents having legal passes to travel across the Strait have been allowed to board chartered flights instead of just business people and their families. Xiamen, in southeastern Fujian Province, has become the newest destination.

Meanwhile, the service has been expanded to three other major Chinese festivals, the Qingming Festival, or Tomb Sweeping Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.

However, residents and industries from both sides are calling for regular chartered flights for weekends and faster cargo transport services.

It was a "down-to-earth and right" attitude that the two sides would pick up easier problems first and start from economic issues, said Chiao Jen-ho, former SEF vice chairman and secretary-general, in a telephone interview with Xinhua.

"I believe the talks will produce practical results," he said.