Doubts on overtures to China

However, the Taiwanese government criticised the talks, saying they would do nothing to improve the current tense relations.

In a ceremony televised live in China and Taiwan, Mr Hu and Lien Chan, the chairman of the Nationalist Party, smiled and shook hands in the Great Hall of the People, the seat of China’s legislature in central Beijing.

Beijing and Taipei should focus on "peace, stability and development for the future", Mr Hu said.

Mr Lien responded: "We absolutely should avoid confrontation and collisions. What we want is conciliation. We want dialogue."

Mr Lien’s visit is the first by a Nationalist leader since the party, which once ruled all of China, fled the mainland following its defeat by the communists in 1949.

The lavish welcome given to him was part of Chinese efforts to isolate Chen Shui-bian, the president of Taiwan, whose party favours formal independence for the country - a step that Beijing says it would go to war to stop.

Mr Lien favours unification and Beijing appeared to be trying to encourage flagging pro-unification sentiment in Taiwan amid a campaign by Mr Chen to promote the island as a distinct nation. Mr Chen’s election in 2000 put an end to decades of Nationalist rule in Taiwan.

Mr Lien said he hoped his visit would help ease tensions. However, the Taiwanese government said that nothing had changed, noting that Mr Lien had failed to get Mr Hu to lessen the threat of war.

China has repeatedly said it would attack if the democratic island refused to unify with the mainland. The Taiwanese government said Mr Lien "did not convince the Chinese communists to reduce their missile threat".

There are an estimated 600 to 700 ballistic missiles along China’s coast near Taiwan.

Taiwan is a major potential flashpoint in Asia. Though the United States has no official ties with Taiwan, it is the island’s main arms supplier and could be drawn into any conflict.

China also has been building ties with other parties in Taiwan that oppose formal independence.