President Hu Jintao (R) is welcomed by a Kazakh official upon his arrival at Astana, Kazakhstan, Dec 12, 2009. [Xinhua]

The Chinese leader said in his speech on arrival at the Astana Airport in the Kazakh capital that the two countries support each other in areas of mutual benefit.

Hu said the China-Kazakhstan cooperation has made positive contributions to regional peace and development through their work under multi-national frameworks like the United Nations and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

This is Hu's fourth visit to the Central Asian country as Chinese president since 2003. His two other visits were in 2005 and 2007 respectively.

In Astana, the Chinese leader is expected to hold talks with his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev on further developing the friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries.