Chinese President Arrives in Switzerland for State Visit, Davos Forum (Update)

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Zurich on Sunday to pay a state visit to Switzerland and attend the 2017 annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

It is the first state visit to the Alpine country by a Chinese president in the 21st century. Xi will also become the first Chinese head of state to attend the Davos meeting.

The Swiss government rolled out the red carpet for the arrival of the Chinese president and his wife Peng Liyuan at Zurich airport. The couple were greeted by Swiss President Doris Leuthard and her husband Roland Hausin.

Accompanied by Leuthard, Xi inspected the guard of honor with a military band playing the two countries' national anthems.

In a written speech delivered at the airport, the Chinese president briefly reviewed the friendly exchanges and cooperation between the two countries since they first established diplomatic ties 67 years ago.

"I hope that, through my visit, we can deepen the traditional friendship between our two peoples, expand our practical cooperation in various areas, enrich the meaning of our innovative strategic partnership, push the bilateral ties to a new high, and jointly make positive contributions to promoting world economic recovery," he said.

After the welcome ceremony at Zurich airport, Xi traveled to the Swiss capital of Bern on a special train provided by the Swiss government, where he was scheduled to have talks and meetings with Swiss leaders.

China and Switzerland have enjoyed long-term exchanges and cooperation. In 1950, Switzerland was one of the first Western countries to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with the newly-founded People's Republic of China. At the start of this century, Switzerland was among the first European countries to recognize China as a full market economy. In recent years, Switzerland also became the first country on the European continent to implement a free trade agreement with China.

Xi will later travel to the ski resort of Davos to attend the WEF annual meeting, which comes as economic globalization faces challenges such as the rise of populism and trade protectionism.

The Chinese president will deliver a keynote speech at the opening ceremony on Tuesday where he is expected to share the views of the world's second largest economy on charting the course for globalization to make it more inclusive and beneficial to all, as well as set out plans for revitalizing global economic growth.

The four-day Swiss visit is Xi’s first overseas trip of 2017. Following the Davos forum, Xi will travel to Geneva to visit the headquarters of the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) and the World Health Organization as well as the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne.

Xi will give a speech at the UNOG on Wednesday where he is expected to set out his vision on how to realize the vision of building a community for the shared future of mankind.
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