The Chinese mainland's Taiwan affairs chief is scheduled to make a historic four-day visit to the island later this month, a Taiwan official said on Thursday.

Zhang Zhijun, head of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, will lead a delegation to visit Taiwan on June 23, said Wu Mei-hung, spokeswoman for the Mainland Affairs Council in Taipei.

Zhang will visit New Taipei, Tai-chung and Kaohsiung, she said during a news conference.

The visit will be the first to the island by a chief from the mainland's Taiwan Affairs Office.

An official from the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council confirmed the information released by the Taiwan spokeswoman later on Thursday.

Zhang will meet with Wang Yu-chi, his Taiwan counterpart, and exchange ideas with him on cross-Straits issues, said the official, who declined to be named.

Wang Jin-pyng, head of the legislative chamber of Taiwan, said on Thursday that Zhang is scheduled to meet with students at I-Shou University in Kaohsiung, according to a report by Hong Kong-based Taiwan Review.

Zhang will not meet with officials of Taiwan's "central government", nor will he visit Taipei, the report said.

According to the current agenda, Zhang is not scheduled to meet with Tsai Ing-wen, chairwoman of Taiwan's main opposition Democratic Progressive Party, the report said.

Fan Liqing, spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Wednesday that the mainland firmly opposes the DPP's "Taiwan independence" stance and secessionist attempts.

In February, Zhang met visiting Wang Yu-chi in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, and accepted Wang's invitation to visit the island.

During the meeting, Zhang told Wang that he expected to visit Taiwan in the first half of this year.

Both sides should deepen political trust and promote interactions to benefit the people, Zhang said on Monday while meeting with Wu Po-hsiung, visiting honorary chairman of Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang.

anbaijie@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 06/13/2014 page2)