Xi will address Davos annual meeting: diplomat

President Xi Jinping will deliver a keynote speech when attending the World Economic Forum annual meeting at Davos later this month, according to a senior Chinese diplomat.

Xi will visit Switzerland from Jan 15 to 18, and he will attend the Davos meeting on Jan 17.

Vice-Foreign Minister Li Baodong told a Wednesday news conference in Beijing that it is the first time a Chinese president attends the annual meeting in Davos, which is of great historical significance.

Xi's attendance has attracted great attention amid the sluggish international trade and investment, the rise of protectionism and the impact upon multilateral trade mechanism, the diplomat noted.

"China is ready to embark on in-depth discussions with various parties to jointly tackle major global challenge and promote the healthy, stable development of world economy," Li said.

By participating in the meeting, the Chinese leader aims at elaborating China's views and positions to respond to concerns of international community about economic globalization, Li said.

China plans to analyze the deep-seated factors behind the problems of world economic growth and seek to find directions and pathways that point on the way out, Li said.

Also, the Chinese leader will respond to the world's focus on hotspot issues of Chinese economy and boost understanding of various parties over Chinese economy, Li added.