Chinese, Italian FMs hold phone talks on bilateral cooperation

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday held a phone conversation with Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani on bilateral cooperation.

Italy is a major country in Europe, and China attaches great importance to its relations with Italy, Wang said, adding that Chinese President Xi Jinping and Italian President Sergio Mattarella have established profound mutual trust and friendship.

Last week, Wang said, Xi and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had a successful meeting on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Bali summit, giving strategic guidance to the development of bilateral relations.

China is ready to work with Italy to actively implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, and continuously push forward and inject new connotation into the China-Italy comprehensive strategic partnership, Wang said.

China is ready to maintain the momentum of high-level exchanges with Italy, hold a new joint meeting of the China-Italy Government Committee as soon as possible, and strengthen cooperation in such fields as economy, trade, finance and science and technology, he added.

As two ancient civilizations with profound cultural heritage, China and Italy can view each other in a more rational and inclusive way and handle differences with greater historical depth, Wang said, expressing hope that the two sides can uphold the spirit of mutual respect, further enhance mutual trust and consolidate the political foundation of bilateral relations.

The economies of China and Italy are highly complementary, and the bilateral cooperation is mutually beneficial and enjoys huge potential, Wang said, adding that China will be firm in high-standard opening up, and is ready to import more quality Italian products to strengthen bilateral cooperation in energy transition, green development, science and technology and promote third-party cooperation.

China extends welcome to more Italian enterprises to invest in China, Wang said, expecting Italy to continue to provide a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises.

China supports Italy in hosting the next Winter Olympics and will continue to increase flights between the two countries to facilitate personnel exchanges, Wang said.

China always regards the European Union (EU) as a comprehensive strategic partner, and supports the EU's strategic autonomy, Wang said, adding that it is China's hope that Europe will remain stable and prosperous.

China's policy toward Europe, Wang said, has maintained stability and continuity, regardless of the changes in the international situation.

Noting that the China-Europe relationship is not targeting any third party or controlled by anyone else, Wang welcomes European friends from all walks of life to come to China to learn more about the actual situation and experience China's development and progress.

Wang also expressed hope that Italy will continue to play a positive and constructive role in China-Europe exchanges.

For his part, Tajani said that China is a major country and an important partner of Italy, noting that the meeting between Meloni and Xi have achieved fruitful outcomes.

He said that Italy is ready to make joint efforts with China in implementing the consensus of the leaders of the two countries by strengthening bilateral dialogue, enhancing cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, science and technology, energy and third-party markets, so as to promote the development of Italy-China relations.

The Italian market is open to Chinese enterprises, he said, expressing hope that in the post-pandemic era, Europe and China will maintain and deepen dialogue and cooperation in tourism and other fields.

The two sides also exchanged views on the Ukraine issue.