BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will pay a state visit to China from Oct. 27 to 31 at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Steinmeier was born in Detmold, North Rhine-Westphalia, in January 1956. He obtained his doctorate of law from the University of Giessen.
From 1999 to 2005, he served as chief of staff to then German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. He was foreign minister from 2005 to 2009, and concurrently vice chancellor starting in November 2007.
From 2009 to 2013, he was chairman of the Social Democratic Party parliamentary group in the Bundestag. He served as foreign minister again from 2013 to 2017.
In February 2017, Steinmeier was elected the 12th president of the Federal Republic of Germany (the 16th Federal Assembly). He was re-elected to the post in February 2022. ■
