BEIJING -- A Chinese mainland official on Wednesday said it is "very natural" that a young man and a young woman from the two sides of the Taiwan Strait would get together and develop mutual affection.

Yang Yi, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks at a regular press conference in response to recent media hype about a romance between a Taiwanese air force officer and a mainland journalist.

Compatriots across the Strait are a family, and ever-closer cross-Strait exchanges have brought about increasing opportunities for young people on both sides to have contact and communicate with one another, Yang said, noting that the attraction is natural and warrants no further discussion.

In terms of whether this will affect the mainland journalist's future assignments in Taiwan, Yang said that would be decided by the news organization.

According to Yang, the total number of cross-Strait marriages has reached 320,000 since travel from Taiwan to the mainland was first allowed in 1987, and the number is rising by over 10,000 couples annually.