Xi: Sound, stable relations benefit Beijing and Rome

President Xi Jinping shakes hands with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Beijing on Monday. (FENG YONGBIN/CHINA DAILY)

A sound and stable China-Italy relationship serve the common interests of both nations, President Xi Jinping told visiting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Monday, urging the two countries to stay committed to mutual opening-up and cooperation.

During their talks at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Xi told Meloni that China's readiness to develop bilateral ties, as well as the importance it attaches to bilateral relations, remains unchanged, despite ongoing profound changes in the global landscape.

Win-win cooperation is still the nature of China-Italy relations, he said, calling on the two sides to continue to understand and respect each other's choice of development path.

On Saturday, Meloni kicked off a five-day official visit to China, her first trip to the country since assuming office in October 2022. In November of that year, Xi and Meloni had a meeting in Bali, Indonesia.

China and Italy are located at both ends of the ancient Silk Road, and the historical friendly exchanges between the two countries have made important contributions to exchanges and mutual learning between Eastern and Western civilizations, Xi said.

China and Italy should uphold and carry forward the Silk Road spirit, and view and develop bilateral relations from a historical, strategic, and long-term perspective, he said.

A three-year action plan to strengthen the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership was issued on Monday.

According to the plan, the two countries confirmed that priority will be given to cooperation in areas including trade and investment, finance, scientific and technological innovation, education, green and sustainable development, healthcare, and people-to-people exchanges.

China welcomes investment from Italian companies and is willing to import more high-quality Italian products, Xi said during their talks, adding that he hopes that Italy will also provide a fair, transparent, safe, and nondiscriminatory business environment for Chinese companies operating in Italy.

He said that China supports Italy in hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics, and expects Rome to provide visa facilitation for Chinese citizens to visit the country.

China sticks to the path of peaceful development and never seeks hegemony, Xi said, adding that it would like to share development opportunities with other countries.

Xi said he hopes that Italy will understand and support China's development philosophy and play a constructive role in promoting dialogue and cooperation between China and the European Union and in pushing for the positive and stable development of China-EU relations.

Meloni said that Beijing plays an irreplaceable role in dealing with global challenges, expressing her willingness to advance closer and higher-level partnership with China.

Italy opposes decoupling and disruption of industrial and supply chains as well as protectionism, she said, adding that it is ready to play a positive role in promoting ever-stronger China-EU relations that will deliver tangible outcomes.

Zhao Leji, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the nation's top legislature, also met with Meloni on Monday.

Sun Yanhong, a senior research fellow at the Institute of European Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that Meloni's China trip seeks to repair and stabilize the relationship strained by Italy's unilateral decision not to renew its participation in the Belt and Road Initiative.

With integrated economic interests and a strong desire for cooperation, there is broad space for the two countries to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, Sun said.

Strengthening pragmatic cooperation between the two countries is also conducive to stabilizing China-EU relations, she said.

Italy's policy toward China will need to balance transatlantic interests and operate within the EU framework, which will bring more challenges to China-Italy cooperation.

What is needed now is for both sides to engage in thorough communication to find new paths and forms for strengthening cooperation under the new circumstances, in order to achieve win-win outcomes, she said.