BEIJING, March 4 (UPI) -- China and Taiwan have improved trade and tourism cooperation, although the relationship could face new challenges in 2007, a Chinese spokesman said.
The indirect trade volume between mainland China and Taiwan in 2006 was $100 billion, Xinhua reported from the National People's Congress, which opens Monday.
Taiwan residents visited mainland China more than 4.4 million times, while residents of mainland China visited Taiwan more than 200,000 times, Xinhua said. A charter flight program, which used to run only during the Spring Festival, has been expanded to other holidays.
At a press conference preceding the annual conference, spokesman Jiang Enzhu said ties between China and Taiwan will face "severe challenges in 2007 as Taiwan may try to secede," Xinhua reported.
"(But) no difficulties may challenge our faith in maintaining the peaceful development of the cross-straits relations, nor can any new troubles sway our determination to check Taiwan independence," Xinhua quoted Jiang as saying at the news conference.
