BEIJING, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping will pay state visits to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Senegal, Rwanda and South Africa from July 19 to 24, attend the 10th BRICS summit from July 25 to 27 in Johannesburg and visit Mauritius during a stopover, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced Thursday.

Xi is paying the state visits at the invitation of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Senegalese President Macky Sall, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said in a statement.

Xi will attend the BRICS summit at the invitation of President Ramaphosa, Lu said. BRICS is the acronym for an emerging-market bloc that groups Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

On his way home, Xi will also pay a friendly visit to Mauritius during a stopover, Lu added.