BEIJING, May 2 (Xinhuanet) -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao left here Sunday for an official visit to the Federal Republic of Germany on Sunday. The following are major events in Sino-German relations.

    China and Germany established diplomatic relations on Oct. 11, 1972, after which the bilateral ties have developed very smoothly.

    High-level visits of the two countries have been exchanged frequently, and the foreign ministries of the two countries have set up a political consultative mechanism for mutual visits by thetwo foreign ministers.

    In September 1993, the German government put forward a new policy on Asia with a stress on China, and in November German Chancellor Helmut Kohl paid his third visit to China.

    In 1994, Chairman of China's National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, Qiao Shi, and Chinese Premier Li Peng visited Germany, respectively.

    In 1995, there was an all-round development in the Sino-German relationship. In July, Chinese President Jiang Zemin paid a state visit to Germany, and German Chancellor Kohl had his fourth visit to China.

    In April 1998, Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji met with German Chancellor Kohl, and Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan met with German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel respectively at the AsiaEurope Meeting convened in London.

    In April 2002, Chinese President Jiang made his second state visit to Germany. In October, there were a series of large-scale activities conducted by the two sides separately to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

    Currently, Germany is China's largest economic and trading partner in Europe. Enditem