On November 10, 2009, Chinese President Hu Jintao left Beijing by special plane to pay state visits to Malaysia and Singapore and attend the 17th APEC economic leaders meeting to be held in Singapore at the invitations of Malaysian Supreme Head of State Mizan Zainal Abidin, Singaporean President S. R. Natha and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Hu's entourage includes his wife Liu Yongqing; Ling Jihua, member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of General Office of CPC Central Committee; Wang Huning, member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and director of Policy Research Office of the CPC Central Committee; State Councilor Dai Bingguo; Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi; Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Zhang Ping; Commerce Minister Chen Deming; Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei; Vice Commerce Minister Yi Xiaozhun; Director of the President's Office Chen Shiju; and Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue.