BEIJING, March 22 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping left Beijing on Saturday morning for visits to the Netherlands, France, Germany and Belgium from March 22 to April 1.

President Xi will attend the third Nuclear Security Summit(NSS) in The Hague from March 24 to 25, at the invitation of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

He will pay state visits to the Netherlands, France, Germany and Belgium, at the invitation of Dutch King Willem-Alexander, French President Francois Hollande, German President Joachim Gauck and Belgian King Philippe.

At the invitation of UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, the Chinese president is scheduled to visit the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on March 27.

He will also visit the headquarters of the European Union from March 31 to April 1, as guest of European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Xi's entourage includes his wife Peng Liyuan; Wang Huning, a member of the Political Bureau and director of the Policy Research Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee; Li Zhanshu, a member of the Political Bureau and Secretariat and Director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee; and State Councilor Yang Jiechi.