An editorial in Hong Kong Economic Times says the scheduled visit has recieved high praise from the international community and people on the Taiwan island. The visit will develop cross-straits relations into a new phase.

Another editorial in the Macao Daily News says it's a crucial way to alleviate the tension as well as promote communication between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Lien Chan is the chairman of Taiwan's main opposition party, the Kuomintang. He heads to the mainland for a landmark visit next Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese President Hu Jintao.

His eight-day "peace trip" starts in Nanjing, in east China's Jiangsu Province and will also take him to Beijing, Xi'an - in the northwest - and Shanghai.