BEIJING - Chinese mainland's Taiwan affairs chief Wang Yi and Frank Hsieh from Taiwan on Saturday held a meeting which was regarded as "beneficial" by both, a mainland spokesman said.

During the meeting in Beijing, Wang, director of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, briefed Mr Hsieh on the latest development and the prospect of the mainland, said the office's spokesman Yang Yi.

Wang also explained the mainland's policies on Taiwan, Yang said.

Both sides regarded the meeting as "beneficial", Yang said.

Hsieh is visiting the mainland in his personal capacity as the chairman of the Taiwan Reform Foundation, the spokesman said.

Frank Hsieh, former head of Taiwan's opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), waves to media during a visit to the Institute of Taiwan Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Science in Beijing, Oct 6. Hsieh was on a five-day "private" visit to the mainland.