Turkish President Gul meets with Chinese counterpart in Beijing

Hu received Gul, who was making his first visit to China as president, at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, the seat of government in China.

"I am confident that the visit by President Gul this time will help push forward China-Turkey relations to a new level," Hu told him.

Gu’ls office released a statement before his six-day visit saying it would "serve to evaluate all aspects of our relations and prospects of diversifying and strengthening cooperation areas."

Trade volume between the two countries has grown over the years to about 17 billion dollars in 2008 -- heavily in Chinas favor with 15.6 billion dollars worth of exports to Turkey.

But the global slump has seen the volume steadily decrease since November. Bilateral trade shrank by 37.6 percent in the first quarter of 2009.

Turkish press reports have said that the two countries are looking to carry out their trade using their national currencies rather than dollars and euros.

The official China Daily newspaper said Gul also would visit the southern coastal manufacturing hubs of Shenzhen and Guangzhou, the northern city of Xian, as well as Urumqi, capital of Chinas Xinjiang region.

Members of Xinjiang’s Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uighur ethnic group accuse China of political, religious and cultural repression, while Beijing says separatists seek an independent Muslim homeland there.

However, Turkey supports China’s territorial integrity and opposes any separatist movement.

Gul also will meet with Premier Wen Jiabao during his trip.