UK announces date of China state visit

LONDON: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II will host Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit to the UK next month, Buckingham Palace said in a statement today.

President Xi Jinping and his wife, Madame Peng Liyuan, will be hosted by the Queen and her husband Prince Philip at the palace from October 20-23.

While plans for a state visit had been known, the dates were not revealed yet.

The latest announcement follows a high-profile visit by UK Chancellor of Exchequer George Osborne to China to push for more Chinese investment in Britain.

The last Chinese state visit to Britain was in 2005 by then president Hu Jintao and more recently, Prince William travelled to the country in March as an official envoy of the UK government.

The 89-year-old British monarch and the Duke of Edinburgh had themselves paid a state visit to China in 1986.

A state visit hosted by the British monarch usually includes a visit to Parliament, and a meeting with the prime minister.

The Queen had confirmed the state in her customary parliamentary speech in May: "Prince Philip and I look forward to welcoming his excellency the president of the People's Republic of China and Madame Peng on a state visit in October."

The UK visit will come soon after one hosted by US President Barack Obama for the Chinese President.