Taiwan delegation arrives in Shanghai for cross-strait talks

A delegation headed by Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman Lin Join-sane arrived in Shanghai on Thursday for a new round of talks with mainland negotiators. The delegation was welcomed by Chen Deming, president of the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS). The talks will be the first of their kind to be held since the two sides' newly-elected leaders took office. They will also mark the ninth round of talks between the two sides since SEF and ARATS resumed talks in June 2008 after a nine-year suspension. The two sides are expected to sign a cross-strait service trade agreement during the talks. Chen said at a welcoming ceremony that the agreement will be a milestone in the implementation of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), a wide-ranging cross-strait economic pact signed in 2010. "Both sides should make efforts not only to avoid being marginalized in a new global economic environment, but also to complement each other and join hands to upgrade the international competitiveness of both sides," Chen said. Lin said meeting Chen for the first time was "like visiting an old friend." He described the agreement as "mutually beneficial and win-win." Lin added that the agreement will boost the modernization of service sectors on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, as well as create more business and job opportunities for both sides.