Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has arrived in China for her first visit since taking office nearly two years ago.
Her five-day trip will include meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang, with boosting bilateral trade and ending the war in Ukraine topping the agenda.
Meloni “arrived in Beijing on the afternoon of July 27 for an official visit,” state broadcaster CGTN said in a post on the Weibo social network.
The prime minister will be looking to “relaunch bilateral relations in sectors of common interest”, an Italian official told Agence France-Presse 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 last year, having been the only Group of 7 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.
