Colombian president to visit China

BEIJING -- At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of the Republic of Colombia Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego will pay a state visit to China from October 24 to 26, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying announced on Monday.

Another Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, gave additional information about the visit at Monday's daily news briefing.

President Xi will hold a welcome ceremony and a banquet for President Petro, and the two heads of state will hold talks to chart the course for the development of the China-Colombia relationship in the new era. They will also attend a signing ceremony of cooperation documents, Mao said.

This will be the first state visit to China by Petro after he took office, Mao said.

She said that Colombia is an important country in Latin America, and China-Colombia relations have been developing smoothly with fruitful cooperation in recent years, which has brought tangible benefits to the two peoples.