Senior Communist Party of China (CPC) leader Li Changchun met with a 10-member media delegation from six Latin American countries in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Wednesday.

Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, said Oct. 1 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the People's Republic of China, and he hoped the delegates could take this opportunity to have more understanding about China's economic and social progress.

He said China and Latin America have enjoyed a long history of friendship and have maintained coordination in international affairs.

In recent years,the media of the two countries have made fruitful exchanges, which have promoted understanding, he said.

The delegation, which consists of media leaders from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, is visiting China at the invitation of the Information Office of the State Council.

According to the Information Office, the delegation arrived in Beijing on Aug. 29, and will visit China's southwest Guizhou Province, the eastern province of Jiangsu, and China's business hub Shanghai.

They will visit the countryside in Guizhou to see how Chinese farmers are building a new socialist countryside. In Jiangsu, they will visit a hi-tech economic zone. They will hold meetings with local media in Jiangsu and Shanghai.

The delegation will conclude their visit on Sept. 11.

(Xinhua News Agency September 2, 2009)