• A tight agenda of activities awaits the first of the 20 APEC Economic Leaders to arrive for the APEC 2008 Leaders’ Week.

This afternoon, the Leader of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, arrived to Peru together with his wife, Liu Yingqing.   The highest representative of this APEC Member Economy arrived together with an extensive delegation representing the Executive power and the business sector.

Hu Jintao was received with a brief protocol ceremony included the welcome by the Peruvian Minister of Education, José Antonio Chang, the President of the Callao Region, Alex Kouri, and Ambassador Carlos Pareja, Protocol and Ceremonial Director of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hu Jintao, the first Leader from the People’s Republic of China to visit Peru, will have a very tight agenda during the four days of his stay.  After his arrival, he visited the Government Palace together with the Peruvian Leader, Alan García, to have a private meeting.  During this meeting, both Leaders had a dialogue about the APEC cooperation agreements and; as a means of gratefulness, the highest representatives of this Member Economy was awarded the Order of the Sun.

Tomorrow, after meeting early in the morning with the group of Peruvian entrepreneurs, Hu Jintao will visit the Peruvian Congress at 10:45, where he will have a private meeting with the President of the Congress, Luis Velásquez Quesquen and the members of the Congress Board.  In the afternoon, he will participate in the solemn session where he will receive the Medal of Honor of the Peruvian Congress and the Degree of Great Cross.

Great expectations arose with the presence of Hu Jintao in Peru because of the potential signature of the Free Trade Agreement between the People’s Republic of China and Peru, Economy which the Chinese Leader referred to as “an important commercial partner and investment destiny in the Asia-Pacific region.”