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Some hostile forces continue to maliciously hype up the cooperation between China and Italy under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which goes against the trend of history and will benefit no one, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday in response to media reports on the bilateral relations between China and Italy.

China and Italy have made the right choice to jointly build the BRI cooperation based on historical and cultural origins as well as development needs. The signing of the BRI document has greatly stimulated the enthusiasm and potential for bilateral cooperation, the spokesperson said.

China and Italy signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to jointly advance the construction of the Belt and Road in March 2019. But recently, some media have reported speculation that Italy may not renew the China-Italy BRI MoU.

Over the past five years, bilateral trade between China and Italy has increased by 42 percent, which reached nearly $80 billion in 2022. Italy has served as the country of honor of China International Import Expo and China International Consumer Products Expo, bringing many products into the Chinese market. 

The two countries have jointly built large cruise ships and carried out cooperation in third-party markets such as Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. Italy has become the most popular destination for Chinese tourists in Europe, and its art exhibitions are widely welcomed in China, the spokesperson noted.

Since China proposed the BRI in 2013, China has signed more than 200 BRI cooperation documents with more than 150 countries and 30 international organizations. The BRI has stimulated nearly trillion dollars of investment, formed more than 3,000 cooperation projects, created 420,000 jobs for countries along the route, and lifted nearly 40 million people out of poverty.

Facts have fully proved that building BRI cooperation meets the development needs of the world and the expectations of the international community, and has always maintained strong resilience and vitality. 

China is ready to work with relevant countries to promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and continue to make greater contributions to global sustainable development and exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations, the spokesperson said.

Global Times