Taipei
A Taiwanese airliner flew to mainland China this week for the first time in more than 50 years. The plane was part of a series of charter flights to bring Taiwanese passengers living in China home to Taiwan for Chinese New Year celebrations. The flights are good news for the half-million Taiwanese who live in the area around Shanghai, but they aren’t without inconveniences. A mandatory stop in Hong Kong or Macao adds four hours to what would be a one-hour hop across the Taiwan Strait. “We hope that the day of direct flights will come soon,” said Han Zheng, deputy mayor of Shanghai. China is Taiwan’s largest export market, and Taiwanese businesses have been pushing for direct flights. But Taiwanese officials fear that China could use such flights to camouflage an attack.
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