Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian offered on Saturday to shake hands and make peace with Chinese leader Hu Jintao, in an apparent bid to reassure voters that bilateral ties would not worsen if he is re-elected next month.
Chen, whose plan to hold Taiwan's first referendum has drawn threats of war from China, also said he aimed to post an envoy to Beijing if elected in the March 20 elections.
"Ah Bian's biggest hope is one day, in the next four years, we can shake hands with President Hu Jintao and reconcile," Chen said during a live television debate with Lien Chan, the main opposition Nationalist Party's presidential candidate.
Analysts said Chen is likely to be ignored by China, which considers Taiwan to be part of its territory and has refused to deal with the pro-independence Chen since he took office in 2000, ending more than 50 years of Nationalist rule.
The referendum - which will coincide with the election and ask voters whether Taiwan should boost its defence capabilities in the face of Chinese missile threats - has only made Beijing more suspicious of Chen.
China says the ballot is a dangerous step towards Taiwan independence that could lead to war.
Chen has also come under fire at home, with some moderate voters worrying that re-electing him could further destabilise ties with the democratic island's giant communist neighbour.
"He's trying to tell the United States and Taiwan voters that in spite of pushing ahead with the referendum, he is not that hawkish," Hsu Szu-chien, a China watcher at National Chengchi University's Institute of International Relations.
"He hopes to leave room to turn things around."
Most surveys showed Lien ahead of Chen by about three to five percentage points, though a fifth of voters remain undecided.
Lien, who vowed not to vote in what he called an "illegal" referendum, has the support of many in the business community, especially those with factories in China, analysts said.
Hundreds of Taiwan businessmen converged on a luxury hotel in Shanghai on Saturday to talk up Lien's candidacy - in the closest thing to a Nationalist campaign rally on Chinese soil since they were driven from the mainland in 1949.
With just four weeks to go before the polls, the two candidates - both wearing dark suits and pale pink ties - fought hard during the debate to win over swing voters in what is shaping up to be a tight race.
They sparred over a wide range of topics in the 2-1/2-hour event, including ties with China, the economy, legislative reform, military conscription and women's and minority rights.
Each accused the other of twisting his words, making contradictory statements and dodging questions.
Chen, 53, called Lien naive and accused his rival of lacking persistence and faith. He attacked the Nationalists' anti-independence stance, saying they were the reason Taiwan "is an international orphan today," referring to fewer than 30 countries with diplomatic ties with Taipei.
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