Italian Ambassador to China Massimo Ambrosetti gives a speech at the celebration event in Beijing on June 3, 2025. Photo: Dong Feng/GT

The Embassy of the Republic of Italy in China hosted the Italian National Day in Beijing on June 3. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Hua Chunying attended and addressed the event, highlighting the importance of dialogue and cooperation.  

In his video address, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said that "Italy is a protagonist in the commitment to peace, dialogue, and growth."  

The Italian government's commitment to peace is constant, as is the utmost attention we devoted to compatriots and companies, Tajani noted. 

"We work tirelessly for growth, to bring more and more Italian know-how of excellence to the world!" he added. 

Italian Ambassador to China Massimo Ambrosetti welcomed delegates, saying that "today is also an occasion to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the Republic of Italy and the People's Republic of China. It is a significant milestone that invites both commemoration and renews engagement. We have built a solid and multifaceted partnership enriched by dialogue, cooperation, and mutual respect."

The ambassador stressed that Italy and China's relations span across many sectors - from trade and investment to culture and education, from scientific collaboration to people-to-people exchanges. "It is a relationship deeply rooted in the historical interaction between our millennial old civilizations," he said in his speech. 

He also recalled that the year 2024, which marked the 20th anniversary of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Italy, as well as the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death, has witnessed an intense calendar of high-level exchanges that took place in both countries. 

"This year, we are engaged in keeping the momentum and continuity and concrete results from this new phase of our bilateral relations," the ambassador said, noting the framework of the high-level consultations mechanism has made the bilateral partnership truly comprehensive. 

Ambassador Ambrosetti said that the 55th anniversary of Italy-China diplomatic ties coincides with the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between the European Union and China. "Looking ahead, it is our share of responsibility to pursue a strategic interaction, aiming at stabilizing and rebalancing the EU-China relations in a way which can meet with a concrete and sustainable approach, and to address the many complex challenges and outstanding issues we face," he urged. 

In her speech, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Hua extended festive greetings to Italian friends and thanked everyone who has been supporting and growing the relations and cooperation between China and Italy on behalf of the Chinese Foreign Ministry. 

Both China and Italy have made great contributions to the progress of mankind. "As two ancient civilizations, our continued and rich exchanges and mutual learning have added brilliant colors to the garden of world civilizations. In 2024, the two sides jointly commemorated the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death and held more than a dozen cultural and museum exhibitions in each other's country, which were widely welcomed by the peoples of both countries," said Hua, sharing that Italy's top musical Divine Comedy is about to start a tour in China.

Recently, more than 100 students from 17 Italian universities came to China for a tour.