China, Italy walk toward stronger ties
By
Zhao Jiaming from People’s Daily
The
city of Rome has been surrounded by a friendly atmosphere these days.
Before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the European country,
Italian President Sergio Mattarella, Prime Minister
Giuseppe Conte, and other politicians and famous people of
various circles received interviews with People’s Daily.
The
most special interview was the one we had with former Italian President Giorgio
Napolitano. Though the 94-year-old respectable could not talk to us face-to-face
due to his health conditions, he published a signed article on People’s Daily
to send his best regards to President Xi.
These
interviewees expressed a common view that China is open and confident under
Xi’s leadership, and has made impressive progress. They agree that China has created
important opportunities for Italy and the world as a whole through its own
development.
As
two ancient civilizations in Asia and Europe, China and Italy started to share
a special connection since more than 2,000 years ago.
During
the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD), Chinese emissary Gan
Ying was sent to search for "Da Qin", the Chinese name of the Roman
Empire at the time.
When Julius Caesar (100-44 B.C.), the
legendary Roman general, turned up at a
theater draped in splendid Chinese silk, he caused a big stir. The famous
explorer Marco Polo's Travels roused the first wave of "China fever" among
European countries.
In
addition, from Martino Martini, author of the first Chinese grammar book in
Europe, to the Peking opera version of Turandot jointly launched by artists of
the two countries, numerous vivid pictures have depicted the frequent
exchanges and friendly dialogues between the two ancient
civilizations.
Last
year, Italy's Economic Development Ministry launched the Task Force China,
a mechanism aimed at boosting economic relations with China. The move has displayed
an active and pragmatic attitude
of the Italian government toward strengthening cooperation
with China. In 2018, China-Italy bilateral trade exceeded $50
billion, and two-way investment surpassed $20 billion.
President
Xi’s visit is a significant event for not only both countries concerned, but
also the whole world, said Italy’s Finance Minister Giovanni Tria, adding that
the trip will exert important influence over Europe-China relations and the
world as a whole.
China
and Italy are both supporters of multilateralism and free trade. The two
countries could enhance communication and cooperation on global
governance, climate change, reform of the World
Trade Organization (WTO), so as to jointly safeguard global peace
and stability, as well as development and prosperity.
The
Italian side expects and believes that President Xi’s visit will surely provide
strong impetus and open a brighter prospect for the two countries to elevate
their comprehensive strategic partnership.
Martine,
a clerk of a jewelry store at Spanish Square in Rome, speaks fluent Chinese.
The young lady graduating from the Italian Institute of Oriental Studies at
Sapienza University of Rome told People’s Daily that she has studied at Beijing
Foreign Studies University and has a Chinese name Ma Lin.
Excited
about President Xi’s visit, Martine said China’s openness, development
and prosperity is beyond her imagination, adding that Italy needs
China to develop. “I look forward to revisiting China as soon as possible,” she
told People’s Daily.
“In
the course of over two millennia, our two countries have embraced the
principles of mutual respect, mutual learning, mutual trust and mutual
understanding in our interactions, principles that underpin our long-lasting,
ever-strong friendship,” President Xi said in the signed article published on
an Italian newspaper before his visit.
The
principle is in line with the traditional Chinese culture of inclusiveness and
harmony, which is to seek harmony within diversity and pursue common
prosperity. The world is a community of shared future for mankind, though
countries have different social systems, culture backgrounds, and development stages.
Only
by having the mind and perspective that seeks inclusiveness, as well as the
trait and spirit that pursues harmony can we eliminate conflicts
between different civilizations and realize common development.
Forging
a new form of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness,
justice, and win-win cooperation conforms to the trend of the times and is a
natural choice of history, at a time when the world is undergoing profound
changes unseen in a century.
The
ancient Silk Road has composed an ever-lasting epic between China and Italy. In
the new era, the two countries have the confidence and wisdom to upgrade the
traditional friendship which is deeply rooted in history into concrete actions
to enhance strategic mutual trust, consolidate pragmatic cooperation, promote
cultural exchanges and strengthen communication and coordination, so as to
better benefit the two peoples and the world.
China, Italy walk toward stronger ties
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