Beijing to deepen its cooperation with Greece

Senior Communist Party of China official Liu Yunshan met Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos on Tuesday, agreeing to deepen cooperation between the two countries at various levels and respect each other’s core interests.

Liu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, conveyed best regards from Chinese President Xi Jinping to Pavlopoulos, saying that China-Greece relations have stood the test of ever-changing international situations and achieved constant progress on cooperation since the two countries established diplomatic ties 44 years ago.

China is ready to conduct closer cooperation with Greece at various levels, share mutual understanding and support on issues related to each other’s core and major interests, said Liu.

Liu highlighted enhanced dialogue among different civilizations, saying that China and Greece, as two ancient civilizations in the world, should learn from each other and play an active role in jointly forging four major China-Europe partnerships for peace, growth, reform and civilization.

Pavlopoulos, for his part, appreciated China’s stance on Greece's debt crisis, saying he is satisfied with the sound development of bilateral relations.

Greece and China both should take advantage of their cultural influence and set an example for other countries to give importance to cultural exchanges, said Pavlopoulos.

Liu is on an official goodwill visit to Greece that began on Sunday. On Monday, Liu met Greek parliamentary speaker Nikos Voutsis.

Both LiuandVoutsis attended the China-Europe Civilization Dialogue held in Athens onMonday.