Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) left on Monday for an 11-day trip to China, where sources said he is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on Monday next week.
Ma, president from 2008 to 2016, last year became the first former president to visit China.
Ma met Xi in Singapore in late 2015 for a landmark summit shortly before President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) won election.
Photo: Yao Chieh-hsiu, Taipei Times
Ma and China's government have not confirmed the meeting with Xi, which has been widely reported in local media.
Three sources familiar with Ma's trip, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the issue, told Reuters it was expected to take place in Beijing on Monday next week.
"This is a trip of peace as well as of friendship," Ma told reporters in brief remarks at the airport before flying to Shenzhen in Guangdong Province.
Ma added that he hoped to convey a message that Taiwanese love peace and hope to avoid war.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office, which calls him "Mr Ma Ying-jeou" rather than former president, would only say last week when asked about a meeting with Xi that it wished Ma a smooth trip.
Ma's office said while in Guangdong he is to visit Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD and Tencent, the world's largest video game company and operator of China's WeChat messaging platform.
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