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Beijing, Chine - State-owned Air China said on Tuesday that the first regularly scheduled flights in six decades linking China's mainland with Taiwan will begin on July 4.
The flights are part of a warming in relations between China and Taiwan, which split in 1949 amid civil war. The communist mainland claims the island as part of its territory and has threatened to attack.
The weekend flights will link Beijing with Taiwan's capital, Taipei, and the southern port of Kaohsiung, Air China said.
'This new bridge between Taipei, Kaohsiung and Beijing will help enhance China's cultural and commercial ties,' an Air China spokesman, Mr Zhang Chunzhi, said in a statement.
Taiwan barred direct travel for decades as a security measure but has allowed charter flights on Chinese holidays in recent years.
Pressure for direct flights came from Taiwanese businesspeople who have invested heavily in the mainland. They complained about the cost and inconvenience of having to travel to China via Hong Kong and other third points.
Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou, who took office on May 20, promised to improve ties with China. Relations were strained for eight years during the administration of Mr Ma's predecessor, Mr Chen Shui-bian. Beijing accused Mr Chen of plotting to make Taiwan's de facto independence permanent.
Beijing and Taipei have no formal relations. -- AP
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