PM Mitsotakis meets Shanghai Party Secretary Li Qiang during visit to China

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Sunday met the Shanghai Party Secretary for the Communist Party of China, Li Qiang, during a visit to the Chinese city to attend the China International Import Expo 2019, where Greece is among the honoured countries. The Expo is taking place on November 2-5.

"Greece is our good friend in Europe. We have good bilateral relations," Li Qiang said, as he received the Greek premier.

Mitsotakis said it was a great honour to visit China as a prime minister and referred to his earlier visits to the country in 1995, noting the impressive economic progress since that time that had raised China to the world second-largest economy and brought 800 million people out of poverty.

"Greece and China are linked by a deep cultural relationship," he added, expressing gratitude that "during this crucial decade [China] decided to stay in our country and continue to invest."

The prime minister referred to Cosco's investment in the port of Piraeus, noting that the aim was to make it the foremost port of the Mediterranean, as well as other agreements, such as a direct air link between Athens and Shanghai, and the prospects this opens up for tourism in both countries. According to Mitsotakis, it was a feasible goal for Greece to aim to attract 500,000 tourists from China in 2020-2021, while the Greek government's top priority was to attract investments.