Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and China's President, and Vietnamese leaders met in Hanoi Thursday afternoon for talks on bilateral relations.

Hu and Nong Duc Manh, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and Nguyen Minh Triet, president of Vietnam, are expected to discuss relations between the two parties and the two countries during their talks.

They are also expected to exchange views on world and regional issues of common concern.

A Chinese foreign ministry official said earlier that Hu and Vietnamese leaders will have an in-depth exchange of views on relations between two countries and parties from strategic perspective and overall concern.

Hu arrived in the central Vietnamese city of Danang Wednesday afternoon, and traveled to the Vietnamese capital Hanoi Thursday noon to continue his state visit to the Southeast Asian nation.

In Hanoi, the Chinese leader will also attend the 14th Economic Leaders' Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) scheduled for November 18-19.

According to Chinese Foreign ministry officials, on the sidelines of the meeting, Hu will meet a number of leaders of APEC members, including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President George W.Bush.

Hu is expected to leave Hanoi Sunday to continue his four- nation trip, which will also take him to Laos, India and Pakistan.

Source: Xinhua