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Italy sees great cooperation potential in China's five-year plan: ambassador

Xinhua, March 18, 2016 Adjust font size:

The 13th Five-Year Plan for socioeconomic development in China in the 2016-2020 period approved by Chinese lawmakers Wednesday offers abundant opportunities for Italy to strengthen cooperation with China, the Italian Ambassador to China said Friday.

"The 13th Five-year Plan calls for China's growth to be more quality-oriented and (for China) to expand the service sector. Italy can be a perfect partner in this transition," Ambassador Ettore Francesco Sequi told Xinhua in an interview.

"We foresee great potential for bilateral cooperation with China," he noted.

Many Italian companies are leaders in their respective global market segments, and the Italian expertise in food safety, green technologies, urban planning and healthcare services can be useful to China, said Sequi.

The ambassador also spoke highly of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, which, he said, could provide remarkable opportunities to countries involved, such as Italy, especially in the field of logistics. "Italy can act as a natural gateway to Europe," he added.

The 13th Five-Year Plan outlines the policy framework, priorities and economic and social development goals from 2016 to 2020, including an innovation-driven development strategy and an average annual growth rate of above 6.5 percent. Endi