Greek PM thanks Chinese government and concludes visit bearing gifts

Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping for the warm welcome the Greek government delegation received and for including Greece as an honoured country in the China International Expo in taking place in Shanghai.

"There is a government in Greece committed to facilitating foreign investors, attracting foreign capital and creating wealth and prosperity for all Greeks in a sustainable way that respects the environment," Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stressed during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Shanghai.

"Thank you very much for the warm welcome, both to me and to the members of the Greek delegation," Mitsotakis said, stressing the importance of his visit to China only four months after his election.

"It denotes the special importance we attach to our bilateral relations," the PM said, while also referring to the "special significance" of the relationship between Greece and China, whose civilisations stretch back centuries, against a cultural backdrop.

The Greek PM concluded his visit with new agreements including a new airline route between Shanghai – Athens, the opening of a branch of the Bank of China and an agreement between the 'Marianna V. Vardinoyannis-ELPIDA' Children’s Oncology Hospital and the Beijing Children's Hospital among others.

On his part, Xi Jinping noted that the Greek delegation’s visit gives new impetus to their strategic cooperation.

"The Shanghai exhibition is a step towards opening the Chinese market to the rest of the world. China has invited Greece to be an honoured country in this exhibition so that you can promote your own products as well. China is happy for Greece to take advantage of this opportunity. It is a win-win situation,” said the Chinese President.