Li Changchun, a senior official of the Communist Party of China(CPC), left Beijing on Friday morning for an official good-will visit to Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunis and Syria.

Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, will visit the five nations from March 21 to April 4.

Li was invited by the Algerian National Liberation Front, Mauritanian national union for democracy and development (Pacte National Pour la Democratie et le development), the Moroccan government, Tunisian Democratic Constitutional Rally and Syrian Baath Arab Socialist Party.

Li's accompany included Wang Jiarui, head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, Ji Bingxuan, deputy head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, Wang Taihua, head of the Chinese State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, Liu Binjie, director of the General Administration of Press and Publications, and Wei Jianguo, vice-minister of commerce.

(Xinhua News Agency March 21, 2008)