Chinese President Hu Jintao flew into Ottawa, capital of Canada, Wednesday for a state visit, and later he will travel to Toronto for a summit of the Group of Twenty (G20), which aims to secure the global economic recovery and address economic challenges and risks.

Chinese President Hu Jintao arrives at the airport in Ottawa for a state visit to Canada, June 23, 2010. Later he will travel to Toronto for a summit of the Group of Twenty(G20).[Fan Rujun/Xinhua]

Hu was greeted at the airport by Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon. During his visit, Hu will meet Canadian Governor-General Michaelle Jean and Prime Minister Stephen Harper and exchange views on the development of China-Canada relations and major world and regional issues of mutual interest, Chinese diplomats said.

The two countries will sign a number of cooperation documents during Hu's visit, they said.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of China-Canada diplomatic ties. China and Canada are both influential countries in the Asia-Pacific region, sharing extensive common interests and broad prospects for cooperation.

During the past 40 years, the two countries have expanded bilateral cooperation in various areas, such as economy, trade, energy and resources, culture, education and environmental protection.

In September 2005, President Hu paid a state visit to Canada. And last December Prime Minister Harper paid his first visit to China since he took office in 2006.

During Harper's visit, President Hu and other Chinese leaders met Harper and had an in-depth, candid and productive exchange of views on China-Canada relations and major international and regional issues of mutual interest, finding consensus in many areas.

The two sides agreed to work together to further promote China-Canada cooperation in all bilateral areas and international affairs, as bilateral relations enter a significant new era.

At present, China is Canada's second largest trade partner while Canada is China's 13th. In 2009, their two-way bilateral trade reached 29.7 billion U.S. dollars.

In the first four months of this year, bilateral trade stood at 10.2 billion dollars, an increase of 19 percent over the corresponding period last year.