BEIJING, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- Top Chinese legislator Wu Bangguo will pay a visit in both an official and a goodwill capacity to Chile on Sept. 5-7.

    Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislative body, will arrive in Chile's capital of Santiago on Sept. 5 as the guest of President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle of the Senate and President Antonio Leal Labrin of the Chamber of Deputies of the National Congress of Chile.

    The following are the key facts about Chile:

    The Republic of Chile lies along the Pacific coast of South America, extending from Peru and Bolivia in the north to Cape Horn in the far south. To the east, Chile is separated from Argentina by the high Andes mountains. Its coastline stretches about 10,000 km.

    Chile has an area of approximately 756,000 sq km. Its population, according to a 2002 census, is about 15 million. The great majority of the Chileans are Christians, most of them Roman Catholics. The official language is Spanish.

    Chile won its independence in 1818 from Spanish rule, which began in the 16th century. The country won the War of the Pacific (1879-83) against Peru and Bolivia.

    Chile abounds in minerals, forestry and fishing resources. It has the largest copper reserve in the world, which accounts for a third of the world's total. Its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2004 was 94.11 billion U.S. dollars.

    Chile's major trading partners include Argentina, the United States, Japan, Britain, Brazil and China.

    Chile is a member of the Latin American Integration Association and was admitted to the Rio Group in 1990 and to APEC in 1994. Chile is also one of the founding members of the World Trade Organization.

    Chile was the first South American country to establish diplomatic relations with China on Dec. 15, 1970. Enditem