2001年1月1日臺灣開始試辦金門、馬祖、澎湖地區對大陸地區的「小三通」，並以「除罪化」及「可操之在我」為優先實施項目。初期是開放金馬地區與大陸福建地區進行貨物、人員、船舶及郵電等之雙向往來。政府希望以「小三通」促進離島經濟繁榮、增進兩岸良性互動，並期降低雙方緊張情勢，惟實施迄令，對改善兩岸關係的助益相當有限。 欲使「小三通」成為兩岸直接通航的突破口，兩岸唯有共同努力結束長期的對立，儘快恢復對話，以處理與三通有關的政治問題，才能為兩岸三通奠定基礎。

　　　　　The "Mini Three Links" was formally put into effect on January 1, 2001 and will be implemented through several stages. The initial stage allow residents of Kinmen and Matsu to conduct direct trade and shipping with Mainland China. The next stage will involve increasing bilateral exchange of commercial activities to make the operation more economically meaningful. This article analyzes the concept of the "Mini Three Links", the policies of China and Taiwan, and the impact on the interactions across the Taiwan Strait. For the interactions across the Taiwan strait, the status of the "Mini Three Links" is to serve as a transition to future broader links. The one-sided modus operandi applied to the "small three links", in which Taiwan unilaterally opened the links without any negotiations with the mainland may not be applicable to the big three links. Although the scale and complexity of the three direct links far exceed those of the "mini links", but the results of the mini three links may serve as a policy reference. In sum, Taiwan and China must work towards ending their long-standing opposition, and restart negotiations to deal with the political questions related to the "three links," Both sides should also begin drafting mechanisms to handle shipping routes, trade and health checks of goods and people traveling across the Taiwan Strait to pave the way for the three direct links.