Xi to be 1st China leader to attend

GENEVA — China’s President Xi Jinping will attend the World Economic Forum next week, becoming the first Chinese head of state to do so at the annual gathering of business leaders, politicians and cultural icons in the Swiss Alpine town of Davos.

As part of an official visit to Switzerland, Xi will attend and open the annual economic meeting in the ski resort of Davos on Jan. 17, accompanied by the largest delegation of officials from China since the world’s most populous country first participated at the forum nearly four decades ago.

Xi’s attendance comes as China has sought to be more influential globally and present itself as a force for stability and champion of globalization and opponent of protectionism. The Davos forum takes place during a week when the United States, home to the world’s largest economy, will be focused on Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration as president.

“We are all aware that we are now in the transition in the world to a multilateral, to a multipolar, geopolitical and geoeconomic structure,” World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday.

“China will equal the United States soon as far as economic power is concerned,” Schwab added, noting a “strong” Chinese business delegation would accompany Xi.

“In the spirit of Davos, we want to engage them as much as possible,” he said.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi said last month that China would “lead the way amid a shakeup in global governance, we will take hold of the situation amid international chaos, we will protect our interests amid intense and complex games.”