CHONGQING, June 29 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese mainland's Taiwan affairs chief Wang Yi on Tuesday hailed the signing of two agreements between the mainland and Taiwan as a "milestone" in the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations.

Wang, head of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks here when meeting with Chiang Pin-kung, Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) chairman, after the signing of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) and an agreement on intellectual property rights protection.

The signing of the ECFA would help both sides raise economic competitiveness, increase people's welfare, promote the common interests of the Chinese nation, jointly embrace the opportunities and tackle the challenges brought about by regional economic integration, he said.

The agreements were agreed upon by the mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and SEF.

The ARATS and SEF handle cross-Strait issues on behalf of their respective authorities.