Mayor Ying meets Italian regional leader

Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong met Attilio Fontana, president of Lombardy region in Italy, in Shanghai yesterday.

China and Italy are both ancient civilizations with a long history of friendship between the two peoples, Ying noted. In 1979 Shanghai and Milan established friendly city relationship, and Shanghai established a friendly exchange relationship with Lombardy in 2002, deepening cooperation in the fields of economy, culture, tourism and creative industries, he said, adding that they have since become one of the most closely connected areas.

“We are willing to expand cooperation in a wider, broader and higher level within the framework of the consensus of the China-Italy comprehensive strategic partnership agreed by the two heads of state, and we welcome enterprises from Lombardy to invest and develop in Shanghai,” Ying stated.

Shanghai is a city full of vitality and Lombardy is willing to work closely with Shanghai to deepen friendly relations between the two sides, Fontana said. “The second China International Import Expo has just ended successfully. The Italian business community is willing to further deepen cooperation with Shanghai. It is hoped that more Italian products will be welcomed by Chinese consumers, and more Chinese and Shanghai tourists will visit Italy,” he added.

Michele Cecchi, the Italian Consul General in Shanghai, also attended the meeting.