On the afternoon of April 24, 2006, Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Rabat, capital of Morocco, kicking off his state visit to this country.

At 13:30, local time, Hu's special plane arrived at the Salé Airport in Rabat. Hu and his wife Liu Yongqing were welcomed by Moroccan Prime Minister Driss Jettou and other officials at the airport.

Hu delivered a written speech at the airport. He pointed out that despite the distance keeping the two countries apart, the friendship between both peoples goes back to ancient times. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 48 years ago, bilateral friendly relations have been developing steadily with friendly cooperation in the areas of politics, economy & trade, health, tourism and science & technology continuously expanded and both sides have maintained closer consultations and cooperation in international affairs.

Hu indicated that during his visit, he will hold talks with King Mohammed VI and meet with Prime Minister Jettou, Chamber of Representatives President Abdeloughed Radi and Senate President Moustapha Okacha and both sides will exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of common interest. China attaches great importance to developing bilateral ties and would like to work with Morocco to push friendly cooperative relations to one new level after another in the spirit of enhancing friendship, expanding consensus, deepening cooperation and realizing mutual benefits and bring benefits to both countries and their people.

Chinese Ambassador to Morocco Cheng Tao and the staff of the Chinese Embassy in Morocco also welcomed Hu and his delegation at the airport.