Report: China further eases travel to Taiwan to increase exchange

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
China said it is further easing restrictions on travel to Taiwan to increase exchanges between the sides, amid warming ties between the political rivals. The official Xinhua News Agency said late Sunday that China would allow its residents holding Taiwan travel permits to use more entry and exit points in the Taiwan Strait. Wang Yi, director of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said in the Xinhua report that Chinese travelers can now use the Taiwanese offshore island of Penghu, as well as Kinmen and Matsu, two Taiwanese islands close to the Chinese coast. Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949. China still claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory and threatens war if Taiwan moves to formalize its de facto independence.