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US Vice-President Joe Biden will visit China later this month and is expected to exchange views with leaders on issues such as the South China Sea disputes, US arms sales to Taiwan and US debt.

Biden's visit will take place from Aug 17 to 22 at the invitation of Vice-President Xi Jinping, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a news release on Monday.

While in China, Biden will meet with Xi and other Chinese leaders, including President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, to consult on a broad range of bilateral, regional and global issues, according to a White House news release.

Biden will also visit the southwestern city of Chengdu, according to the White House. Many US high-tech companies invest in Chengdu, including Intel, Chevron and Dell, and the city hosts the headquarters of The Peace Corps.

After leaving China, Biden will travel to Mongolia and Japan.

Biden's visit, the first of the planned reciprocal visits between the vice-presidents announced during Hu's state visit to Washington earlier this year, will bring the working relationship between Chinese and US high-level officials closer and further stabilize the Sino-US relationship, analysts said.

Biden will arrive in China at a sensitive time, as China and US issued the Aug 17 Joint Communique in 1982, in which the US declared that it will not seek long-term arms sales to Taiwan and that they will be reduced over time, said Fu Mengzi, a researcher on Sino-US relations at China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

Another important topic will be how to coordinate on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, Fu said.

Questions:

1. When will Biden visit China?

2. Where will Biden go after China?

3. In what year was the Aug 17 Joint Communique?

Answers:

1. Aug 17 to 22.

2. Mongolia and Japan.

3. 1982.

（中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑）

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.