Cheng, 56, will lead a Kuomintang (KMT) delegation to China on Tuesday -- the first by a sitting chairperson of the party since 2016 -- where she hopes to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The former talk show host and legislator has rocked Taiwanese politics since her unexpected rise in November to the top of the KMT, which has long advocated closer economic links and cultural exchanges with Beijing.

Cheng has been accused by critics, including inside the KMT, of being too pro-China, which claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to annex it.

Some in the KMT fear her vociferous rhetoric, which often echoes Beijing, could scare off moderate voters in local elections this year and the presidential race in 2028 and erode relations with the United States -- Taiwan's most important security backer.

Speaking to foreign media recently, Cheng said talks with Xi would carry "significant symbolic meaning" and could be a "foundation" for peaceful relations across the Taiwan Strait.

"I do not believe a single meeting can resolve all the issues that have been accumulating for nearly a century," Cheng said.

"But... I hope I can successfully build such a bridge."

- 'Make our home stronger' -

Cheng grew up in a "military dependents' village" for members of the KMT forces and their families, many of whom had fled to Taiwan after the KMT was defeated by communist fighters in China in 1949.

Despite her family background, Cheng was a scathing critic of the KMT in her youth. She was a student activist and member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and campaigned vigorously for Taiwan's independence.

She later abandoned the idea and quit the DPP after becoming disillusioned by infighting and "discovering that Taiwan independence is a lie".

In 2005, she joined the KMT.

"Taiwanese independence is an absolutely impossible dead end, so why should we pay such an unreasonable price for it," Cheng said recently, apparently referring to the risk of triggering a conflict with China.

Widely considered a dark-horse candidate in last year's KMT chairperson elections because of her positions on China, which go beyond the comfort zone of many members, Cheng stunned the party establishment by defeating her male rivals.

Cheng immediately vowed to unify the party and "make our home better and stronger".

"For the safety, well-being, and future of 23 million people, we must jointly demonstrate the utmost sincerity and goodwill to resolve cross-strait differences and keep the two sides away from war and conflict," she said.

Cheng has stirred controversy with her outspoken views, declaring Taiwanese people should be proud of their Chinese heritage and insisting Russian President Vladimir Putin is not a dictator.

Taiwan and China have linguistic, cultural and historic connections. But recent surveys by National Chengchi University show the majority of people in Taiwan identify as Taiwanese and do not support unification with China.

A strident critic of President Lai Ching-te, who belongs to the DPP, Cheng has also railed against the government's plan to increase defence spending, largely for US arms purchases, previously telling AFP that "Taiwan isn't an ATM".

Cheng has accused Lai of pushing Taiwan towards a potential war in which the island would be the "biggest loser", but the DPP has said she is doing Beijing's bidding by stalling its plans.

"If cross-strait relations are peaceful and stable, we don't need a pointless arms race," Cheng told AFP, insisting dialogue with Beijing was the best option.