President Xi Jinping reaffirmed Beijing's pledge to see Vietnam as a priority of its neighborhood diplomacy in written remarks delivered upon his arrival in Hanoi on Tuesday.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, and his wife Peng Liyuan were given a warm welcome, including a red carpet and a guard of honor, by senior Vietnamese officials, including Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, after their arrival at the Noi Bai International Airport.

Xi, making his first state visit to the Southeast Asian country in six years, said in the written remarks that he looks forward to using the visit as an opportunity to conduct an in-depth exchange of views on the overarching and strategic issues critical to the direction of bilateral relations and the two political parties with the Vietnamese leadership and bringing the ties to a new stage.

He highlighted the long-standing traditional friendship between the two nations, saying that the bilateral friendship forged by the older generation of leaders from both nations represents the precious treasures of both peoples.