Italy hails BRI MOU, expects tangible results
By Cao Siqi and Zhao Juecheng
Italian
scholars, government organizations and business community applauded a
memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly advance the construction of the
Belt and Road signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the
country.
Xi’s
state visit to Italy culminated on March 23 with the signing of the inter-governmental
MOU.
The two
sides realized the huge potential of the
Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in promoting connectivity, and stand ready
to strengthen the alignment of the BRI and Trans-European Transport Networks
and deepen cooperation on ports, logistics, marine transport and other areas,
said a joint communique issued by the two countries on March 23.
Giulia
Sciorati, an assistant research fellow at the School of International Studies
with the University of Trento, told the
Global Times that the Italian government decided to sign the MOU because
Italy seeks to continue strengthening trade relations with China, which is one
of Italy’s key trade partners, both in terms of imports and exports.
According
to Sciorati, 3 percent of Italy’s total exports in 2018 (amounting to about
13.8 billion euros) was destined for Chinese markets. China is the fourth
largest destination for Italian exports, after EU member countries, the US and
Switzerland.
According
to the communique, the two sides expressed willingness to join efforts under
the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to advance connectivity in line
with the AIIB’s mission and functions. More air links can be expected as the
two sides agreed to facilitate the airline business from both countries and
ease the market access for them, said the communique.
During
Xi’s visit, the two sides signed 19 inter-governmental bilateral cooperation
documents.
They
agreed to work cooperatively in fields such as environment and sustainable
energy, agriculture, sustainable urbanization, health, aviation, space
technology, infrastructure and transportation, according to the communique.
Sciorati
predicted that the strongholds in Italy-China relations, which have
historically been tourism and education, will continue to evolve. In
particular, the Marco Polo and Turandot student exchange programs have proven
extremely successful. The 2017-2018 academic year saw Chinese students account
for around 9 percent of Italy’s total number of exchange students, ranking
first in Asia.
Italian
companies and business people are optimistic about the Chinese market, and
expect stronger bilateral ties between the two economies to bring more
opportunities.
Nicola
Brienza, an Italian politician and a mergers and acquisitions businessman in
Shanghai, told the Global Times that
he welcomes the MOU and expects the signing will help him bring more museums
and exhibitions to Shanghai where he has been doing business for 15 years.
The
Italian Trade Agency and Suning Holdings Group, a Fortune Global 500 company,
also announced on March 22 that they inked an agreement to boost made-in-Italy
exports to China.
The
Italian Trade Agency said it will support made-in-Italy brands to more easily
access the fast-growing Chinese market. Suning said it will open an Italian
Pavilion on the online channels over the next three years, offering an Italian
lifestyle and cultural experience, supporting brand penetration in the domestic
market.
Against
the backdrop of China’s expanded opening-up, the two nations have made
remarkable achievements in economic and trade cooperation, with bilateral trade
hitting a historical high of $54.2 billion in 2018.
China’s
opening-up efforts not only promote mutual benefits but draw more Italian
investment with greater openness and widened market access. By the end of last
June, Italy had invested $7.21 billion in 5,937 projects in China, official
data showed.
Source:Global Times
Italian entrepreneurs talk on the
Italy-China Third-Party Market Forum. (Photo by Guan Kejiang from People’s
Daily)
Italy hails BRI MOU, expects tangible results
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