After two years of tensions, mainland-friendly wins in Taiwan’s cities encourage a new high profile to the annual forum

South China Morning Post 
Date: 17 December, 2018
By: Lawrence Chung

Mainland China is sending its largest delegation in two years to the self-ruled island of Taiwan for a city-to-city forum which has been rejuvenated after a period of rising cross-strait tensions.

A record 250 local scholars, industry experts, and municipal officials from Taipei will join 135 delegates from Shanghai at the forum, which in past years has achieved around 30 cooperation agreements on a range of issues, including travel, culture, and environmental protection.

The Shanghai delegates will be led by executive vice-mayor Zhou Bo, the highest-ranking official to attend the event in recent years, according to the city government.

The 2018 Taipei-Shanghai Forum, which kicks off in the island’s capital city on December 19 for three days, is hosted in rotation by the two cities and has been a prominent annual cross-strait event since it was first held in 2010.    [FULL  STORY]