Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday had a rare talk with Taiwan's main opposition leader, Cheng Li-wun, in which they discussed shared culture and bloodlines.

Xi told Cheng, chairwoman of the Nationalist Party, that unification of Taiwan with mainland China is a "historic inevitability." 

The meeting comes as China steps up military drills in the Taiwan Strait and Beijing's criticism of American arms sales to Taiwan, NBC News reported. 

The meeting also comes weeks before President Donald Trump plans to visit Beijing, and may signal China wants to show its influence and strength over the self-governed island of 23 million people.