Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Finland and the United States from April 4 to 7, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang announced at a press conference on Thursday.
"At the invitation of President Sauli Niinisto of the Republic of Finland and President Donald Trump of the United States of America, President Xi Jinping will pay a state visit to Finland from April 4 to 6, and meet with President Trump at Mar-a-lago, Florida, the United States from April 6 to 7," Lu said.
Xi's visit to Finland will be his first trip to a European Union member state this year, and also Xi's first visit to northern Europe as president, Lu said.
"This shows the importance China attaches to a future-oriented new type of partnership with Finland, and support for the EU," the spokesperson added.
When commenting on a question regarding China-U.S. trade links, Lu said the two countries' trade and economies were highly complementary. "China hopes to make joint efforts with the United States to expand trade cooperation, properly settle trade frictions through dialogues, and maintain healthy and stable growth of the trade and economic ties."
This will be the first meeting between Presidents Xi and Trump since the latter assumed office in January.
The two leaders will discuss global, regional, and bilateral issues of mutual concern. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan will also attend a dinner hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump and the First Lady Melania Trump on the evening of April 6, according to a press release by the White House.
