June, Consul General Of Italy In Shanghai: Anti Epidemic Needs Global Cooperation And Expects To Strengthen Cooperation In Many Fields Such As Mechanical Engineering And High Technology.

June 2nd is the national day of Italy. On the eve of the national day of Italy, June, Consul General of Italy in Shanghai (Michele Cecchi) accepted an exclusive interview with the twenty-first Century economic report. June first thanked the Chinese medical team who went to Italy to participate in the epidemic. "Italy is the first country to be attacked by a new crown virus in Europe, so Italy is very concerned about China's experience. China's assistance to our country is obvious. I am very grateful to the Chinese medical team who arrived in Italy in the past few months.

June said that China and Italy have established a very solid foundation for cooperation in the fight against the new crown virus pandemic and hope to continue to consolidate relations between the two countries in the future. According to June, apart from the medical team sent by the Chinese government, there are many exchanges between the Chinese and Italian people, such as the donation of medical materials and information sharing among universities. June stressed that "new crown pneumonia is a global epidemic and must be dealt with in a global partnership".

Standing on the historic node of Sino Italian diplomatic relations 50th anniversary, June said that Italy hopes to cooperate with China on the basis of mutual trust. June expects the two sides to strengthen cooperation and exchanges in the fields of mechanical engineering, high technology, culture, tourism and agriculture.

Located in southern Europe, Italy has a long history as well as China. June believes that despite the different cultures of the two countries, the people of China and Italy share similar social values. "Sino Italian relations have a long history. Over the past 2000 years, the two peoples have been closely linked in culture, ideology and goods exchanges."

In addition, June also expressed his expectation for the third fair. At the second annual fair, Italy attended the exhibition as the guest host country, and Dimallo, Minister of foreign affairs of Italy, also came to the scene. "This is an excellent opportunity," June said. We believe that Italy will be an important participant in the Expo this year to help Italian company gain a higher visibility.

Anti epidemic needs global cooperation

Twenty-first Century: Italy is the first European country to be hit by the new crown virus. What is the situation now?

June: since the announcement of the second phase of the opening of the Italy government in May 18th, the number of patients in Italy has been decreasing. This means that even with the health and safety of citizens and tourists, economic and social activities have begun to recover. We hope that you will soon enjoy the beautiful summer in Italy. At the same time, the government of Italy has also introduced a series of powerful measures to stimulate the economy. Italy is an export-oriented country, so Italy will open its borders in June to facilitate business travellers.

Twenty-first Century: as far as I know, China sent medical teams to Italy to help fight the outbreak of the new crown virus. How do you evaluate their work? What cooperation do the two countries have in the fight against epidemic diseases?

June: as you know, Italy is the first European country to be attacked by the new crown virus. Italy is very concerned about China's experience. China's assistance to our country is obvious. I am very grateful to the Chinese medical team who arrived in Italy in the past few months. Chinese doctors who had previously helped deal with the initial outbreak of Wuhan brought first-hand experience in coping with the new crown virus. We are very grateful for the support of the Chinese government and the Chinese people, whether it is the supply and donation of medical equipment, or the various initiatives and cooperation between enterprises. For example, the Consulate General of Italy in Shanghai has worked with Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine to organize seminars with local hospitals and universities in Italy to discuss the new crown virus. I think sharing experience, sharing knowledge and mutual trust is the key to epidemic prevention.

Twenty-first Century: do you think the fight against the new crown virus requires global cooperation?

June: new crown pneumonia is a global epidemic and must be dealt with in a global partnership. The key is to collect and share information on useful practices and health care. In this case, international cooperation is the key, and cooperation between the government and social capital is also crucial. Global cooperation should include governments and large companies from all over the world to promote research and mass production of vaccines, and the pricing of vaccines should be affordable to everyone.

At the same time, China and Italy can further strengthen their cooperation in the field of health. We hope that our cooperation with China will become closer, so as to increase exchanges between the two countries and share the expertise of both sides. Therefore, we look forward to expanding our cooperation with China in public health, medicine, life sciences and medical equipment through the platform of the fair. This year's Fair will set up a public epidemic prevention area. We look forward to exhibiting our advantages in this area.

All in all, we have built a very solid foundation for cooperation during the new crown pandemic. We hope to continue to consolidate relations between the two countries.

The friendship between China and Italy is very stable.

Twenty-first Century: 2020 is the Sino Italian diplomatic relations 50th anniversary. Will the two countries hold celebrations? How do you view the current Sino Italian relations?

June: Thank you very much for that. The friendship between China and Italy is very stable. This was once again tested against the outbreak of the new crown virus this year. We exchange expertise and provide medical equipment. Our cooperation is multi-dimensional and covers almost all fields.

Of course, cultural heritage and innovation are the DNA of bilateral relations. Sino Italian relations have a long history. Over the past 2000 years, we have been closely linked in culture, ideology and goods. In addition, the innate and spontaneous sympathy of the two peoples also reflects similar values. The core parts of our society are respect for the old, love for the young, family and food. These characteristics in the future will be the main driving force to further enhance mutual understanding and respect among us, and will further consolidate our friendship.

If we want to say that in the field of cooperation between China and Italy, besides cultural exchanges and non-governmental exchanges, we must bear in mind that Italy and China are long-term economic and business partners. In 2019, China and Italy signed a memorandum of understanding on the construction of "one belt and one road". The cooperation between the two countries will focus on some important areas, such as policy dialogue, transportation and existing infrastructure, trade and investment, financial cooperation, non-governmental exchanges, and promoting green development in the third world countries. In the future, we hope to cooperate in four major fields: Mechanical Engineering, high technology, culture and tourism. Agricultural food and public health will also be our potential cooperation areas. I believe that the third coming fair to be held in November this year will be an important moment to further promote trade cooperation between us.

Twenty-first Century: what are the characteristics of Sino Italian relations?

June: China and Italy share common values and are also cultural giants. Over the past 2000 years, we have maintained exchanges in thought and trade, which is a very important asset for both countries. We are not only trading partners, but also have many common characteristics. Therefore, although we are different in culture, we can have in-depth exchanges and understanding. There are more and more private exchanges between the two countries. More and more Chinese students are going to study in Italy. More and more Italians are learning Chinese, and Chinese students in Italian universities are also increasing.

Italy has always been a popular destination for Chinese tourists. What we can see is that Chinese tourists know more about Italy than Italians. Their travel is no longer confined to big cities, but also to other parts of Italy. Besides, they know much about opera, wine, F1 racing, football and so on, especially football. This is a very important part.

In addition, Italy and China are the only countries that have signed agreements to carry out joint police patrols. The Chinese police will patrol in Rome, Venice, Milan, Florence and Italy, and Italy police will take part in patrol and law enforcement activities in Beijing, Shanghai and Xi'an. This shows that the cooperation between the two countries is very deep. Both countries hope citizens can feel secure when traveling abroad.

Twenty-first Century: how to consolidate relations between the two countries in the future?

June: I think cultural exchanges and non-governmental exchanges will be the key. There is no doubt that the two countries will work hard to promote exchanges between the two peoples in the future. For example, the number of friendly cities in the two countries is growing, and the training of China and Italy on the world heritage site of the United Nations Educational, scientific and cultural organization is also increasing. I remember Italy and China are the two countries with the largest number of world heritages in the world. In addition, we will promote cooperation in education, culture, innovation, science, tourism and public welfare.

Opportunities for cooperation in multiple fields

Twenty-first Century: as China further opens up investment fields to foreign-funded enterprises, do you think Italy enterprises will get more investment opportunities in China?

June: Yes, as I said at the beginning, the current economic kinetic energy has been speeded up. The obvious fact is that we need safer supply chains. For example, Italian company investing in China, especially those investing in eastern China, are generally optimistic about this year's prospects, especially those that are well integrated in supply and demand. In short, China's supply chain is prepared for China's market, producing in China and serving China. This shows that those who have a good vision and continue to invest in China have been quite successful. I think this will be a trend, though it will be a great challenge to the current economic crisis, but this trend will continue. Paying close attention to and investing in the market will bring good results. At the same time, we also support the Chinese people to invest in Italy, because the innovation consciousness of the ecosystem there is very strong, which is very advantageous. Of course, mutual investment between the two countries is the center of cooperation between Italy and China.

Twenty-first Century: you just mentioned the fair. Italy has been the main exhibitor of the fair. What do you think Italy and Italy enterprises have gained in the Expo?

June: entering the fair is an excellent opportunity to show Italy in an all-round way. It can be found from exhibitions, whether in science and technology, lifestyle, fashion design, medicine or healthcare. Italy is the main partner country of the first two sessions, and last year's host country. Dimallo, Minister of foreign affairs of Italy, visited the two consecutive sessions. A series of activities were also held during the Expo. In addition, more than 150 Italy enterprises are exhibitors. Therefore, this is an excellent opportunity. It should be emphasized that Italy is a natural partner of China in terms of product quality and trade.

Twenty-first Century: do you think the Chinese market is important for Italy enterprises?

June: This is beyond doubt, and is becoming more and more important. We should aim at new areas of cooperation, especially in terms of safety, sustainability, environment and product quality. Chinese consumers are increasingly aware of the importance of having high quality products, and the core of Italy's products is quality. This is a golden opportunity for Italian company. We hope that our SMEs can find new ways of cooperation with Chinese local companies and investors.

Twenty-first Century: what expectations do you have for the third fair?

June: we are preparing related matters. We know that the third entry will be an important platform because it will be one of the few and most large-scale exhibitions in the world. It shows China's strong commitment to trade reform. Based on the previous two sessions, which laid the foundation for mutual trust, we believe that Italy will be an important participant in the Expo this year, which will help Italian company gain higher visibility.

Twenty-first Century: can we look at the Chinese economy this year?

June: normally, when we look ahead to China's economy, we will assess the current situation of China's economy. At present, we see that the new crown pneumonia epidemic accelerates the economic momentum of some parts of China on the one hand, and on the other hand brings unprecedented challenges to the world's economy and society.

I think China's economy has five major characteristics: first, digital tools have become the most popular solutions; second, global exports are declining, but the importance of domestic market and domestic suppliers is rising; third, the new crown virus epidemic will enhance the intensity and intensity of competition; fourth, the improvement of consumers' health awareness will make the quality of products more prudent. Fifth, the private sector will play a bigger role in the social economy, and the cooperation between the government and social capital will play a key role in the field of infrastructure.

All in all, I think China's economy will maintain a trend of safe growth. There is a trend that may be called safe growth. This is also a very interesting trend for Italy, because we believe that some of our traditional products focus on quality and safety, which may be an important area for our two economies to strengthen cooperation.

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