A Chinese child presented a bouquet of flowers to President Mahinda Rajapaksa to welcome him to China as he began his visit during which the President will attend the fourth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) on an invitation from the Government of China.

The fourth summit on building up self- confidence of Asia is scheduled to open in Shanghai tomorrow. It will continue until the 22nd of this month. 46 state leaders and heads or representatives of international organizations will attend. Secretary General of United Nations Ban Ki Moon is also scheduled to attend the summit.

During his stay in China, President Rajapaksa is scheduled to hold discussions with high level officials of the Chinese Government as well as many foreign delegates. Accordingly, a meeting between the President and the Pakistani President is schedule to take place this evening. The Chinese President Xi Jinping will host a banquet for the visiting heads of states and overseas delegation tonight.

Pictures are seen here, a Chinese child greets President Mahinda Rajapaksa on arrival at Pudong International Airport in Shanghai as Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris, Chief of Staff Mr. Gamini Sedara Senarath and Sri Lanka’s Ambassador in China Mr. Ranjith Uyangoda look on.

Meanwhile Russia's President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Shanghai ahead of the CICA summit at which Russia and China are hoping to deepen ties as Chinese President is expected to make announcements on security in Asia at the summit.

Pix by: Sudath Silva