Zimbabwean President Robert Gabriel Mugabe arrived in Beijing on Friday for the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

A total of 48 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China are to participate in the two-day summit, which is scheduled to start on Nov. 4.

China and Zimbabwee established diplomatic relations on the very day when Zimbabwe declared independence on April 18, 1980. Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People 's Congress, visited Zimbabwe in 2004. Zimbabwean President Mugabe visited China in 2005.

Prior to his departure for China, Mugabe said the summit in Beijing will be a crucial one for building closer bilateral relations between the two nations.

Zimbabwe is a destination country for Chinese citizens and tourist groups. Bilateral trade reached 283 million U.S. dollars in 2005.

Forty-seven delegations of the 48 African countries have arrived in Beijing so far for the summit, including 41 heads of state or government.

Source: Xinhua