Singapore, Nov 7: The leaders of Taiwan and China shook hands today at a historic meeting marking the first top- level contact between the formerly bitter Cold War foes since they split amid civil war 66 years ago.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou came together on neutral ground in the Southeast Asian city-state of Singapore.
The two men smiled broadly as they shook hands for more than one minute, turning slightly to the side to accommodate a host of photojournalists in the ballroom.
When they split in 1949, both sides aspired to absorb the other, and Communist Party-ruled China still demands that Taiwan eventually unify, while many citizens of democratic Taiwan increasingly prefer to simply maintain the separate status the island has carved out over six decades.
