Brussels - The European Union's foreign- ffairs commissioner is to visit China on Sunday ahead of a series of European and global summits, officials in Brussels said Friday.

Benita Ferrero-Waldner will visit Beijing to discuss "issues of common interest and concern," such as a forthcoming summit of the Group of 20 (G20) leading economies in London on Thursday and an EU-China summit planned for May, a statement from her office said.

The commissioner will also discuss ongoing talks on a planned strategic treaty between the two sides.

China is the EU's second-largest trading partner, its largest source of manufactured imports and a key player in fighting the global economic crisis.

But relations hit a rocky patch in November when China called off a planned summit to protest at a meeting between French President Nicolas Sarkozy - then holder of the EU's rotating presidency - and exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.

That summit has now been re-scheduled for May under the chairmanship of the Czech government, which currently holds the EU's presidency.

However, the Czech government fell on Tuesday, casting the organization of the summit into disarray. (dpa)