BERLIN - Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao was to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday for talks expected to focus on trade, but which also come at a time when both countries have important roles in the search for a solution to Iran's nuclear program.

Wen arrived in Hamburg on Wednesday with a large trade delegation to open a business conference called "China meets Europe."

The EU is China's biggest trading partner, while China was the EU's second most important partner in 2004 after the United States. Within the trade bloc, Germany is one of China's most important trading partners, with euro61.2 billion (US$77.6 billion) worth of goods flowing between the countries in 2005.

Wen arrived in Germany from London, where he met British Prime Minister Tony Blair for talks that took up the Iranian nuclear program issue but the two leaders gave no indication of what was said.

China, a key player in international efforts to pressure Tehran to halt uranium enrichment, has resisted US-led efforts to move quickly to UN sanctions as punishment for its refusal to do so. Wen has appealed to the international community to use diplomacy, rather than force, to resolve the standoff.

In June, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, offered Iran a package of economic and diplomatic incentives to limit its nuclear program.

Merkel last week called for the international community to remain unified in trying to persuade Iran to stop its nuclear program, but reiterated that she saw no military solution.

Another matter that could come up between Wen and Merkel is China's record on human rights, which Merkel called "an important issue of bilateral dialogue" after the two met in May in Beijing.

"I think in future meetings we will continue to talk about this issue," she said at the time.