Italy PM in China on first official visit

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived in Beijing on Saturday, Chinese state media said, in her first visit to the country since she took office nearly two years ago.

During the five-day trip she is due to meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang, with boosting bilateral trade and ending the war in Ukraine topping the agenda.

"Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived in Beijing on the afternoon of 27 July for an official visit," state broadcaster CGTN said in a post on the Weibo social network.

Meloni will be looking to "relaunch bilateral relations in sectors of common interest", an Italian official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Talks will focus on "the main issues on the international agenda, starting with the war in Ukraine", the official added.

Meloni's administration withdrew from China's vast Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) last year, having been the only G7 nation to sign up.

Before taking office, Meloni said joining the initiative — a central pillar of Xi's bid to expand China's clout overseas — had been a "mistake".

Italy's non-binding memorandum of understanding with China had contained broad undertakings for cooperation in logistics, infrastructure, financial and environmental sectors.

But details were scarce and the lack of transparency fuelled distrust among Italy's allies.

Agence France-Presse