King Mohammed VI Visits China

PERSISMA, BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) — King Mohammed VI of Morocco will pay a state visit to China from Wednesday at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The following is a brief profile of the king.

Born on Aug. 21, 1963 in the Moroccan capital of Rabat, Mohammed VI is the second child and eldest son of late King Hassan II. He was appointed Heir Apparent and Crown Prince in 1979. Mohammed VI obtained the first certificate of high studies in political sciences in 1987 and a second certificate in public law in 1988, respectively, at the Mohammed V University. He received his PhD in law with distinction in 1993 at the University of Nice-Antipolis in France.

From 1985 to 1994, he served as Coordinator of the Offices and Services of the Royal Army Forces. In 1994, he was promoted to the military rank of Major General. On July 23, 1999, Mohammed VI ascended to the throne, becoming the 22nd king of Morocco.

The king loves reading, swimming and rowing. He masters Arabic and French languages, and knows well English and Spanish.

In 2002, he married Princess Lalla Salma. Their first child, Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan was born in 2003.

Mohammed VI visited China in 1991 as the Crown Prince. In 2002, he paid a state visit to China, making him the first Moroccan king to visit China after the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries in 1958.

In 2008, he paid a private visit to China. In 2015, he paid a private visit to China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.