Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou will meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Singapore on Saturday, Ma's office said, in what will be the first meeting between leaders from the two rivals since the end of a civil war in 1949.

The two presidents will "exchange views on cross-strait issues" Ma's spokesman Charles Chen said Tuesday, referring to the stretch of water separating mainland China and Taiwan.

The intention of the visit is to "secure cross-strait peace" but no agreement will be signed, he said.

The surprise meeting follows a gradual warming of relations with Beijing since Ma of the China-friendly Kuomintang (KMT) came to power in 2008.

Beijing still considers the island part of its territory even though the two sides have been governed separately since Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek and his KMT forces fled to Taiwan after losing the civil war to Mao Zedong's communists.

"The purpose of President Ma's visit is to secure cross-strait peace and maintain the status quo of the Taiwan Straits," Chen said in a statement.

"No agreement will be signed, nor any joint statement be released," he said, adding that Ma will hold an international press conference on Thursday.

The head of Taiwan's top China policy decision-making body, the Mainland Affairs Council, will hold a press conference Wednesday where more details will be released as to the significance of the meeting.

There was no immediate reaction from Beijing but the White House gave a cautious welcome.

"We would certainly welcome steps that are taken on both sides of the Taiwan strait to try and reduce tensions and improve cross-strait relations," said spokesman Josh Earnest.

"But we will have to see what actually comes out of the meeting."

Tuesday's announcement was unexpected after Ma's hopes for a meeting with Xi had previously been dashed despite improved relations.

He had hoped to meet Xi at an APEC meeting in Beijing in November but said China had refused.

"This is a milestone in cross-Strait relations," said Professor Chao Chun-shan, an expert in mainland affairs at Tamkang University in Taipei.

"It should be helpful for the stabilisation of the region," he told the Apple Daily.

But some opposition political parties expressed concern over the meeting and called on supporters to protest Wednesday outside parliament.

- Concern over closer ties -

While ties have warmed under Ma, public sentiment has turned against closer relations as fears over Beijing's influence grow.

Ma will step down as president next year after a maximum two terms and the main opposition China-sceptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is expected to win the leadership at elections in January.

A senior DPP spokesman told local media the party would not comment until further details of the visit were released.

The KMT suffered its heaviest-ever local election defeat last year, with its China-friendly strategy a major factor.

While closer ties with Beijing have brought trade pacts and a tourism boom, many voters feel big business has benefited, rather than ordinary Taiwanese people.

There are also concerns over lack of transparency -- last year saw the unprecedented occupation of parliament by student protesters angered by a trade agreement they said had been made in secret.

But Ma has repeatedly defended his China-friendly policies, saying they have brought stability to the region.

The KMT adheres to the "1992 consensus" -- a tacit agreement between the party and Beijing which acknowledges there is "one China" but allows each side their own interpretation.

Ma has warned against the consequences of diverging from the 1992 consensus, which the DPP does not recognise.

DPP candidate Tsai Ing-wen has repeatedly said that she will maintain the status quo if elected president in January, but is likely to face pressure from pro-independent voices within her own party.

She has also been criticised by the KMT who say she has not fully explained how her policy will work.

The KMT replaced its pro-China presidential candidate last month as the deeply divided party struggles for public support.

Party chairman Eric Chu was endorsed as the KMT's new contender after members voted against Hung Hsiu-chu representing them at the polls, following concern that her conservative views fly in the face of public sentiment.

Hung had historically taken a pro-unification stance and espoused a peace agreement with China.

Brief history of Taiwan since 1949
Taipei (AFP) Nov 3, 2015 - Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou will meet China's President Xi Jinping on Saturday, the first time leaders from the two sides will ever have met since they split at the end of a civil war in 1949.

Following is a brief history of the self-ruled island.

Taiwan, also known as Formosa, is an island off the southeast coast of China between the East and South China Seas. Chinese immigration began in the 17th century. The island came under mainland control after a period of Dutch rule from 1620-62. Taiwan was also occupied by Japan from 1895-1945.

In 1949, about two million supporters of the KMT led by Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan to establish a separate government after losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's communists.

Chiang ruled the island until his death in 1975 and his son Chiang Ching-kuo took the reins in 1978.

In 1987, Chiang Ching-kuo lifted martial law after 38 years, only six months before his death the following year. In 1991, 43 years of emergency rule ended, unilaterally ending a state of war with China.

Chiang's deputy Lee Teng-hui succeeded him in 1988. Lee was the first native Taiwanese to serve as president and he also became Taiwan's first democratically elected leader in 1996.

Lee had stressed the island's statehood, rather than its independence, which riled China, and the United States sent in the Seventh Fleet after Beijing fired test missiles into the Taiwan Strait that year.

Washington has been the island's leading arms supplier, despite switching diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.

- Closer ties -

In 2000, Chen Shui-bian, of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), was elected president, ending the KMT's 51-year grip on power and further straining ties with China.

However, a string of corruption scandals implicating Chen, his family and senior DPP members tarnished the party's image and played a major role in its defeat in the March 2008 presidential vote.

The KMT's Ma Ying-jeou swept to a landslide victory on a platform of boosting the economy, particularly through closer trade ties with China.

Relations have improved dramatically since Ma took office, as the two sides held direct talks in Beijing which led to the launch of regular direct flights and measures to boost tourism.

The Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement was signed in 2010 to reduce commercial barriers and in February last year the first government-to-government talks took place in Nanjing.

However, public sentiment has turned against the KMT with concerns over Chinese influence a major factor.

In spring 2014, 200 students occupied parliament for more than three weeks to demonstrate against a controversial trade pact in what became known as the Sunflower Movement.

The KMT suffered its worst-ever local election defeat in November last year and was forced to replace its own presidential candidate in October this year over her pro-China views.

Officially, China regards the island as part of its territory awaiting reunification and has threatened to invade should it declare formal independence.

Taiwan lost its United Nations seat to China in 1971 and its 16 attempts to rejoin the organisation have been blocked by Beijing.

Only 23 countries formally recognise Taiwan and the two sides have accused each other of using "dollar diplomacy" to woo allies away from each other.