Swiss President Hans-Rudolf Merz said Friday that he warmly welcomes Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Switzerland and is looking forward to meeting him in Bern.

As a power with global influence, China holds a strategic position in the international community, Merz told Chinese Ambassador Dong Jinyi in the Swiss capital.

Discussion with Wen on ways of dealing with the crisis has special significance amid the raging global financial crisis, he said.

Wen is scheduled to arrive in Switzerland next Tuesday for an official working visit. He will also attend the World Economic Forum 2009 annual meeting in the country's famous skiing resort Davos.

Switzerland pays close attention to Wen's forthcoming visit and will be fully prepared for it, since it is of very important historic significance for the comprehensive, in-depth and healthy development of relations between the two countries, he added.

Switzerland was among the first Western countries to establish diplomatic ties with China. The past five decades and more have witnessed the steady growth of Swiss-China relations.

(Xinhua News Agency January 24, 2009)