Frank Hsieh, from the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), made the rare gesture while visiting the fortified Taiwanese island of Kinmen, off the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen.

"If elected as the president, I would like to invite Mr. Hu Jintao to visit Taiwan and come to Kinmen, a place of historic significance, where we could talk," Hsieh said.

He said he wanted to end hostilities with China and turn Taiwan and Kinmen into a demilitarised zone.

The Taiwan Strait has been seen as one of the flashpoints in the Asian region as Beijing has repeatedly threatened to invade Taiwan should the island declare formal independence.

Hsieh called for the shelving of disputes that have hampered the reopening of rapprochement talks between Taipei and Beijing.

Beijing has demanded recognition of its "one China principle," which sees the island as part of China's territory, as a precondition to talks, a stance rejected by the DPP.

The leading opposition Kuomintang (KMT), meanwhile, supports the "one China" principle but says it should be represented as the "Republic of China" (Taiwan's official title).

Recent polls show that Hsieh's rival, former Taipei mayor Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT, enjoys a substantial 20 percent lead over Hsieh ahead of the March 22 presidential election.

Tensions between Beijing and Taipei have escalated since Chen Shui-bian of the DPP was elected president in 2000. He was re-elected in 2004.

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