BEIJING, Nov. 3  -- A senior leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will head a delegation to pay a friendly official visit to Vietnam next week.

Zhang Dejiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, will visit Vietnam from Nov. 8 to 11, said a statement from the International Department of the CPC Central Committee.

Zhang is also chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature.

Zhang was invited by his Vietnam counterpart Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, chairwoman of the National Assembly of Vietnam, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam.