BEIJING, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese government spokesman Wednesday said the mainland would welcome cooperation among earthquake rescuers from both sides of the Taiwan Strait in Haiti.

"We would be glad to see the rescue teams from both sides of the Strait communicate and cooperate with each other when necessary in this humanitarian cause," said Yang Yi, spokesman with the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, at a regular press conference in Beijing.

The People's Republic of China sent a 60-member rescue team to Haiti after the 7.3-magnitude quake jolted the Caribbean island on Jan. 12, although the two countries did not have diplomatic relations.

A 40-member medical team arrived at Port-au-Prince Monday.

Two Taiwan rescue teams and a medical team are also involved in rescue and relief work in Haiti.

Yang did not respond directly to a question on whether the rescuers and medical workers had worked together.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said on Jan. 19 that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan had to date had no cooperation or engagement of their rescue teams in Haiti.