Forget gunboat diplomacy, take the paper boat approach
A Chinese man is hoping to promote peaceful exchanges between China and Taiwan by paddling to a Taiwanese-controlled island in a homemade paper boat.
Zhu Yalin will use two ping pong bats to paddle the 6ft vessel to the contested island of Kinmen, 3.7 miles off the coast of mainland China, on 31 October.
Whether he’ll be welcomed is not known, considering the island has been the focus of hostilities between the countries ever since Nationalist forces fled the mainland following defeat by the Communists in 1949.
Still, good luck to him, especially as he plans to build a paper boat armada to cross the stretch of water if this venture is successful. Photos of Zhu Yalin and his boat can be found here.
