Wu Bangguo (R), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, shakes hands with Italian Chamber of Deputies President Gianfranco Fini in Rome, capital of Italy, May 21, 2009. (Xinhua/Li Tao) Photo Gallery>>>

    ROME, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese top legislator Wu Bangguo called for further expansion of trade and economic cooperation between China and Italy when he met with Italian leaders here on Thursday.

    Wu met with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano and Chamber of Deputies President Gianfranco Fini in the morning.

    He also met with Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday.

    During the meetings, Wu said the Chinese and Italian economies are highly complementary, and the two sides enjoy a sound foundation in cooperation and great potential in expanding trade.

Wu Bangguo (L), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, talks with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in Rome, May 21, 2009. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing) Photo Gallery>>>

    Wu put forward three suggestions on expanding trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

    First, Wu said the two countries should strengthen cooperation between small- and medium-sized companies as a way to expand trade and mutual investment. He said the governments of the two countries should give full play to their joint committees in a bid to support and facilitate cooperation between the companies.

    Second, Wu said the two countries should explore new areas of cooperation. Noting that China is working on economic restructuring and upgrading industries, he said the two sides share broad prospects in the development and utilization of new energy.

    Third, Wu said the two sides should cooperate closely on staging the World Expo. Shanghai will host the World Expo in 2010 and Milan in 2015. Wu expressed the belief that such cooperation will become a new bright spot in China-Italy cooperation.

Wu Bangguo (R), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, meets with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in Rome, May 21, 2009. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing) Photo Gallery>>>

    During his meeting with Berlusconi, Wu said China-Italy relations are in the best ever period in history. The two sides have continuously deepened political trust, achieved good results in trade and economic cooperation and carried out cultural exchanges in a vigorous way. The China-Italy friendship has taken deep root in the hearts of the two peoples, he said.

    Wu said Italy, as an important member of the European Union, plays a top role in regional and international affairs. China attaches importance to developing an all-round strategic partnership with Italy and is ready to join efforts with the country to add new substance to bilateral cooperation and push forward the links in a long-term, stable and healthy manner.

    Berlusconi said China plays an important role on the international stage. He said Italy and China enjoy a good relationship as they maintain fruitful cooperation in various areas, and share similar views on regional and international affairs.

    Berlusconi reiterated that Italy will firmly adhere to the one-China policy.

    He fully agreed with the suggestions that Wu put forward on expanding trade and economic cooperation between the two countries, and expressed satisfaction that trade between Italy and China had maintained growth despite the impact of the international financial crisis. He said China's economic growth and restructuring and industry upgrading have provided major opportunities for expanding cooperation between the two countries.

    Berlusconi expressed willingness to further expand trade, personnel exchanges and tourism with China. He welcomed Chinese companies to invest in Italy.

    Wu said the London G20 summit reached important consensus on improving financial supervision and reforming the international financial system. The summit marked an important step forward in the reform of the global financial governance, Wu said, urging all relevant parties to earnestly implement the consensus.

    He said as China strives to maintain its own stable and rapid economic growth, it is ready to strengthen cooperation with the international community to curb the impact of the financial crisis, avoid all forms of protectionism and safeguard stability of the international financial market. Wu said China will join hands with the world to reduce the impact of the financial crisis on developing countries, especially the least developed ones, so as to achieve an early recovery of the world economy.

    Berlusconi said he highly appreciated China's contributions to addressing the international financial crisis. He expressed the wish to strengthen cooperation with China on resolving the chronic problems in the world economic structure.

    Wu is on an official goodwill visit to Italy.

Special Report: Top Legislator Wu Visits 3 European Nations