TAIPEI, Jun 6 (AP) -- The mayor of Taiwan's third-largest city will visit Beijing Tuesday -- the first popularly elected Taiwanese mayor to visit rival China.

Jason Hu, mayor of Taichung, will attend a three-day forum to promote international cultural exchanges and tourism, Taichung officials said.

Hu is a former Taiwanese former foreign minister.

The Cabinet-level Mainland Affairs Council, which is in charge of relations with China, approved Hu's trip last week as an unofficial exchange.

Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949, and China maintains the self-ruled island is a part of its territory. Taiwan has been cautious about gestures that might compromise its sovereignty and has barred official contacts with the mainland.

Deputy mayors from Taiwanese cities have attended similar forums in China.