³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said China is an "important interlocutor" in managing global tensions, as she met President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

President Xi in turn hailed the "long-established friendly" ties, as well as "tolerance, mutual trust and mutual respect" between Beijing and Rome.

During her first trip to China since taking office, Ms Meloni and Chinese Premier Li Qiang met on Sunday and signed a three-year plan to strengthen economic co-operation.

The five-day visit comes after Ms Meloni last year removed her country from President Xi's signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

At the time, Rome said the massive Chinese investment scheme aimed at promoting bilateral trade had gained less than expected.

Ms Meloni said her visit to China was an effort to "relaunch" the relationship.

After talks with President Xi at Beijing's Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Ms Meloni said: "There is growing insecurity at an international level and I think that China is inevitably a very important interlocutor to address all these dynamics".

She said the two nations must "think together" to remain stable and guarantee peace.

In a statement, Italy's prime minister's office said the two leaders' discussions included the war in Ukraine, the risks of a further escalation of the situation in the Middle East and the growing tensions in the Indo-Pacific.

It added that Prime Minister Meloni and President Xi addressed some of the most important global governance issues, "from artificial intelligence to the fight against climate change and the UN Security Council reform".

Mr Xi urged Rome and Beijing to "uphold the spirit of the Silk Road", so that East-West relations could "rebound into a new era".

"Both sides face important opportunities for mutual development", he said, adding, "Beijing welcomes Italian companies that invest in China and is willing to import more high-quality Italian products".

Italy was the only major Western nation to sign up to the BRI, one of China's most ambitious trade and infrastructure projects, sometimes referred to as the "New Silk Road".

The move was heavily criticised at the time by the US and some other major Western countries.

Since coming to power in 2022, Ms Meloni has sought to lead a more pro-Western and pro-Nato foreign policy than her predecessors.

Before withdrawing from the BRI, Ms Meloni had described the former government's decision to join it as "a serious mistake".

"Every country which is a [BRI] member knows that China is first and they are second and I don't think Italy as a G7 member wanted to be grouped together with Russia, Pakistan or Sri Lanka," said Alicia Garcia-Herrero, chief economist for the Asia Pacific region at investment bank Natixis.

"Without BRI [membership] Meloni is coming to China at a different level of engagement - less as a vassal and more as a partner," she added.

Under Ms Meloni, Italy has moved to block a Chinese state-owned company from taking control of tyre making giant Pirelli.

Rome has also supported a recent move by the European Commission to impose tariffs of as much as 37.6% on electric vehicles imported from China.

Two-way trade between two countries reached 66.8 billion euros (£56.3bn) last year, making China Italy's largest non-EU trading partner after the US.