The Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded that the media said Italy would no longer consider postponing the co construction of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation document Cooperation | One Belt | Document
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Answers Journalists' Questions on the Media's Statement that Italy is No Longer Considering the Extension of the "the Belt and Road" Cooperation Document
Q: According to media reports, Italy is considering no longer postponing the co construction of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation document. It hopes that Italy China relations will not be affected and is willing to continue to strengthen cooperation with China. What is China's response to this?
A: The joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation between China and Italy is the right choice made by the two countries based on historical and cultural origins and practical development needs. The signing of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation document has greatly stimulated the enthusiasm and potential for cooperation between the two sides. In the past five years, bilateral trade volume has increased by 42%, reaching nearly 80 billion US dollars last year; Italy has served as the guest of honor at the Shanghai CIIE and Hainan Consumer Expo, and many products have entered the Chinese market; The two countries jointly build large-scale cruise ships and carry out third-party market cooperation in Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America; Italy has become the most popular tourist destination for Chinese tourists to Europe, and numerous art exhibitions are widely popular in China.
Some forces continue to make malicious hype, politicize the cultural exchanges and economic and trade cooperation of China Italy joint construction of the "the Belt and Road", interfere with cooperation and create fragmentation, which is against the trend of history, harming others but not benefiting themselves. In the 10 years since China proposed the "the Belt and Road" initiative, it has adhered to the principle of joint consultation, joint construction and sharing. It has signed more than 200 cooperation documents with more than 150 countries and more than 30 international organizations, which has boosted the investment scale of nearly trillion dollars worldwide, formed more than 3000 cooperation projects, and created 420000 jobs for countries jointly built. According to the World Bank, in the medium and long term, co building the "the Belt and Road" cooperation will help nearly 40 million people around the world get rid of poverty. Facts have fully proved that the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation meets the needs of world development, conforms to the expectations of the international community, and always maintains strong resilience and vitality. China is willing to work with the co building country to promote high-quality development of the "the Belt and Road" and continue to make greater contributions to promoting global sustainable development and exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations.