Taiwan visit postponed because of crash

For the residents in Kinmen, the rescheduling of Zhang's trip is still important. To further their spirit of their previous meeting in Beijing last November and to give renewed impetus to this year's grassroots exchanges between the two sides, both Zhang and Wang have decided to focus on the improvement of Kinmen residents' livelihoods. Thorny issues such as local water concerns, excessive exploitation of sea sand, and cross-border fishing, were all on Zhang's original agenda.

Besides, Zhang was also to meet Kinmen's county head and interact with locals from all walks of life, for better and firsthand understanding of their opinions regarding cross-Straits exchanges.

The aforementioned problems can be attributed to both Kinmen's geographical location and political status. Being a front between the mainland and Taiwan, Kinmen has received very limited infrastructural support from Taiwan authorities in the past, especially during the ruling terms of the Democratic Progressive Party.

When Zhang does visit Kinmen, his meeting with Wang will be the first time they have focused on local issues. This signals that both sides want to give more attention to the residents' livelihoods through close cooperation, which will be a fundamental boost to the cross-Straits relations and mutual trust in the years to come.

The author is a professor with the Institute of Taiwan Studies, Beijing Union University.