Chinese premier, Greek PM hold phone talks on co-op in port project

BEIJING - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang Tuesday discussed a joint project involving the Greek port of Piraeus over the phone with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

During the conversation, Tsipras briefed Li on Greece's consideration of the enhancement of its cooperation with China in various fields, especially the Piraeus port project.

Li spoke highly of the development of China-Greece relations, and expressed appreciation for the importance attached by Tsipras to bilateral ties and his firm support for the joint port project since the Greek prime minister took office.

The Chinese-run project embodies the traditional friendship between China and Greece and will help increase the two countries' pragmatic cooperation, he said.

It is also conducive to boosting the Greek economy, which in turn will benefit Europe and the European Union, he said.

In the meantime, Li said, the project can boost Chinese enterprises' confidence in investing and developing in Greece and push forward the construction of the China-Europe Land-Sea Express Line.

China is willing to work together with Greece to make Piraeus a first-class port in the Mediterranean and even Europe, as well as an important hub in the region, so that it could become a symbol of mutually beneficial, win-win cooperation between China and Greece, the premier said.

Tsipras said the new Greek government has been committed to strengthening Greece-China pragmatic cooperation since it came into power, and is fully confident about the prospects of the two countries' relations.

Greece's friendship with China goes back a long way, and Greece is willing to become a strategic partner of the Asian country in Europe, he said.

Also, he said Greece firmly supports and will actively accelerate the Piraeus port project, expressing his hope that the Europe-China Land-Sea Express Line would be completed as soon as possible.