On June 29, 2010, leaders of the Association for Relations across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) and the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) signed the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement in Chongqing. Spokesman of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) held a talk today on this, stating that the framework agreement is the economic cooperation agreement signed by the Mainland and Taiwan in accordance with the rules of WTO, combining with the present situation and features of cross-Straits economic growth and in the principle of equality and reciprocity, which has fully integrated the bilateral characteristics and is the special arrangement for the Mainland and Taiwan to boost all-round and in-depth economic cooperation. The signing of the framework agreement marks cross-Straits economic relations has entered a new phase of development in the cooperation of institutionalization and will open up the new pattern of large exchanges, cooperation and development of cross-Straits economy to have provided a strong support for both parties to join hands to participate in a new round international competitiveness as well as the institutional guarantee for the gradual normalization and the future development of more liberalization of cross-Straits economic relations.