BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao on Monday met leaders of organizations of overseas Chinese who came to China for a global conference.

Hu met all the delegates at the Great Hall of People, extending his greetings to all overseas Chinese in the world.

About 570 figures from 110 countries and regions attended the conference, co-sponsored by the State Council's Overseas Chinese Affairs Office and the China Overseas Exchange Association.

Jia Qinglin, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, Vice-President Xi Jinping and Vice-Premier Li Keqiang, joined Hu to meet the delegates.

In his speech at the opening ceremony of the conference, Dai Bingguo, a state councilor, urged the 50 million overseas Chinese to further expand cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, conduct public diplomacy and promote the building of harmonious overseas Chinese communities in a bid to show a good image of Chinese culture, modern China and overseas Chinese people.