Singapore, Nov. 7 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) arrived in Singapore at 10:30 morning Saturday, ahead of a historic meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) later in the day.

Ma said before his departure from Taipei that he hopes the two leaders will take stock of bilateral relations in the past few years and look to the future.

It is also hoped that the meeting will help solidify peace across the Taiwan Strait and maintain the status quo, Ma said.

Update:
●Meeting between leaders of Taiwan, China begins
●Ma puts forth five-point proposal in meeting with Xi
●Xi calls for upholding '1992 consensus' in meeting with Taiwan's Ma

After some opening remarks that are open to the press, Ma and Xi will meet for an hour behind closed doors at Shangri-la Hotel before having dinner together.

It will be the first top-level meeting between the two former adversaries since 1949, when the Kuomintang government moved to Taiwan after its defeat in a civil war with the communists.

Ma is expected to return to Taipei around midnight.

(By Hsieh Chia-chen and Jay Chen)
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