Since China and Italy established diplomatic ties, their friendly cooperative relations have been developing smoothly in various fields.

The recent years have witnessed increasing exchanges of high-level visits and enhanced political mutual trust between the two countries. Their bilateral ties are making big headway and their further cooperation has broad prospects.

Between May 18 and May 24, China's top legislator Wu Bangguo will pay an official goodwill visit to Italy.

Last October, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao held separate meetings with Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi who was in Beijing for the seventh Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit.

Hu said the development of China-Italy ties had gathered strong momentum, as the two countries maintained sound political mutual trust and close coordination in major international issues.

Hailing China's advocacy on building a harmonious world, Berlusconi said Italy valued China's role in international affairs and would work with China to deal with the current financial crisis.

Along with the increasingly close bilateral ties in recent years, bilateral cooperation in economy and trade has also yielded fruitful results.

In 2008, their two-way trade volume reached 38.26 billion US dollars amid a sluggish global economy. China has become an increasingly important trading partner for Italy.

A large number of outstanding Chinese enterprises have come to invest in Italy, attracted by the advanced technology and superb design of its products.

So far, nearly 90 Chinese enterprises from 20 Chinese provinces and cities have set up branches or offices in Italy.

By the end of 2008, China's investment in Italy topped 300 million dollars.

These Chinese enterprises have served as bridges which enhanced trade and technical and personnel exchanges.

As countries with a long history of civilization, both China and Italy have significantly boosted bilateral cultural exchanges in recent years.

"The Year of Italy," a cultural gala co-hosted by the two governments, turned out to be a big success. The event, held in China in 2006, covered exhibition, drama, film, photography, dance, music, environmental protection, health care, education and research, and science and technology. It indicated the Italian government's efforts to strengthen Italy's ties with China, and served to present to the Chinese people a panoramic picture of Italy's culture in various times, and offered them a glimpse into its ancient and modern civilization.

Bilateral cultural exchanges will be further strengthened as a similar event, "The year of China", will be held in Italy in 2009,which marks the 40th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.

Last year when a devastating 8.0-magnitude earthquake hit China's southwestern Sichuan Province on May 12, and caused an enormous loss of lives and properties, the Italian government extended a timely helping hand by offering badly needed relief materials and sending medical teams to operate field hospitals in affected areas.

Similarly, when a 5.8-magnitude tremor hit central Italy on April 6 this year, the Red Cross Society of China immediately donated a total of 30,000 US dollars to quake victims, while ethnic Chinese in Italy also raised funds to help the local victims to ride out the hard times.

The year 2009 will be an extraordinary year in history of the two countries' bilateral ties. Following Wu's visit to Italy, Chinese President Hu Jintao will also visit the country in July and attend the G8 Summit.

The high-level exchanges between both countries will further promote the development of their bilateral ties, give further impetus to bilateral exchanges in political, economic, trade and cultural spheres, and further boost the mutual understanding, trust and friendship between the two peoples.

(Xinhua News Agency May 18, 2009)