Taiwan Strait Taiwan Strait The Taiwan Strait, or Formosa Strait, is a -wide strait separating the island of Taiwan from mainland China. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to the East China Sea to the north. The narrowest part is wide. The Taiwan Strait is the section of sea between the Chinese mainland (in Asia) and the island of Taiwan. Much of China's Fujian Province is west of the strait, having the main islands of Kinmen, Xiamen (a major city overspilling into the mainland and including Gulangyu Island), Pingtan and Matsu just off its coast. The Penghu
Politics of the Republic of China population descends from Han Chinese who migrated from mainland China between 1661 and 1895. Another significant fraction descends from Han Chinese who immigrated from mainland China in the 1940s and 1950s. But between 1895 and the present, Taiwan and mainland China have shared a common government for only 4 years. The shared cultural origin combined with several hundred years of geographical separation, some hundred years of political separation and foreign influences, as well as hostility between the rival Taiwan and China have resulted in national identity being a contentious issue with political overtones. Since democratization and the lifting of martial