BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping left for a three-day state visit to Trinidad and Tobago on Friday as part of his Latin America tour.

This will be the first visit by a Chinese president to Trinidad and Tobago.

Xi is expected to meet with President Anthony Thomas Aquinas Carmona and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, among other officials, and sign a host of cooperative documents covering economy, trade and education during his stay in the Caribbean country.

The following are the major events in the development of the two countries' relations:

Trinidad and Tobago is a major country in the Caribbean region, and China and Trinidad and Tobago have seen expanded cooperation in economy and trade, infrastructure construction and in other sectors since they forged diplomatic ties on June 20, 1974.

In 2005, China and Trinidad and Tobago established the friendly and cooperative relationship of mutual benefit and development. Since then, the two countries have witnessed frequent high-level exchanges.

Based on political mutual trust and support, the two countries have maintained close communication on major international and regional issues and firmly supported each other on issues concerning their core interests.

On bilateral economic and trade ties, cooperation in both public and private sectors between the two countries has been springing up in recent years with bilateral trade surpassing $627 million in 2011.

Cultural and education exchanges between the two countries have also been deepened in recent years.

Troupes of artists from Tianjin, Chongqing and Shenzhen have given performances in Trinidad and Tobago, while China has received more and more students from the Caribbean nation majoring in diverse fields such as international relations, healthcare and art.