New Delhi, April 7 -- Taiwan opposition leader Cheng Li-wun is heading to China on Tuesday at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, in what she call it a "journey for peace" as Beijing calls for the self-ruled island to come under its control.

The visit is the first by a Taiwanese opposition leader in a decade and comes ahead of a meeting in Beijing between Xi and U.S. President Donald Trump scheduled to take place in May.

Before leaving Taipei, the chairwoman of the Kuomintang told reporters that Taiwan must spare no effort to prevent war and seize any opportunity to promote peace.

China claims the self-ruled island as its own territory and has not ruled out the use of force to take it.

"The purpose of this visit to mainland China ...