UN Chief to visit China

CHINA: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will make a four-day visit to China from Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.

Ban will meet with Premier Wen Jiabao and Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Friday, the ministry said.

The Ministry did not give further details of the UN chief's July 23-26 trip but North Korea's nuclear weapons programme is expected to be on his agenda. Ban led international calls for restraint after ethnic unrest in China's northwest Xinjiang region two weeks ago which left at least 192 dead.

Beijing, Tuesday, AFP