State visit by the President of China - program

At the invitation of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander, the President of the People's Republic of China, His Excellency Mr Xi Jinping, and his spouse, Peng Liyuan, will pay a State visit to the Netherlands on Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 March.

President Xi's visit affirms the good bilateral relations between the People's Republic of China and the Netherlands. A great many government ministers and a large trade delegation will be travelling with the President. Immediately following his State visit, Mr Xi will attend the Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague.

Saturday 22 March

The King and Queen will welcome the President and his spouse at Schiphol, after which there will be an official welcome ceremony. Later in the afternoon, the President will be received in audience at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam. The first day of the State visit will conclude with a State banquet at the Royal Palace.

Sunday 23 March

On Sunday 23 March Prime Minister Mark Rutte will meet the President of China at the Catshuis, in order to discuss the good political, economic and cultural relationship between the Netherlands and China. After this meeting, President Xi will attend the Sino-Dutch Economic Forum in Noordwijk.

The Forum, which will be opened by the King, brings together over 200 leading Chinese companies and a similar number of Dutch businesses. After the King's opening words, there will be speeches by President Xi, Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng and Minister for International Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen.

After the Forum, the King, the Queen, President Xi and his spouse will depart for Kasteel Keukenhof, where they will view a presentation on technology in Dutch agricultural and food production chains and opportunities for bilateral cooperation with China in these areas. State Secretary of Economic Affairs Sharon Dijksma will provide a brief explanation of the presentation. After that, a special tulip will be named by mrs. Peng Following a private lunch at Kasteel Keukenhof, the King and Queen will take their leave of the President of China and his spouse.

Monday 24 March

On Monday morning, the President of China will be welcomed to the Dutch Senate by the President of the Senate, Ankie Broekers, and the President of the House of Representatives, Anouchka van Miltenburg.