Economic, trade, cultural integration and mutual promotion promote the continuous development of China Greece relations (International Forum)

The integration and mutual promotion of economy, trade, and culture has become a distinctive feature of the development of China Greece relations. The vigorous development of bilateral relations sets an example for global cooperation and adds momentum to the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind

In November of this year, the first World Classical Studies Conference jointly organized by China and Greece was held in Beijing. The conference announced the establishment of the Chinese Classical Civilization Research Institute in Athens to build a bridge for promoting the exchange of world classical civilization research and the inheritance and development of human civilization. China and Greece are the birthplaces of ancient civilizations from both the East and the West, and their profound cultural heritage provides spiritual nourishment for the sustained development of bilateral relations and the deepening of pragmatic cooperation. In recent years, mutually beneficial cooperation achievements have emerged between the two countries, and the people of both sides have continuously approached each other, further consolidating the consensus of strengthening cultural exchanges and mutual learning.

The economic and trade cooperation between China and Greece is increasingly heating up, effectively promoting common development. The high-quality joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" between the two countries has continued to advance. The bilateral trade volume broke through the US $10 billion mark for the first time in 2021, and has continued to grow since then, reaching nearly US $13.6 billion in 2023. In the first half of this year, Greece's exports to China increased by 23.8% year-on-year, and more and more Greek goods entered the Chinese market. The investment cooperation between China and Greece is becoming increasingly close, with a large number of Chinese enterprises settling in Greece. The mutually beneficial cooperation has added strong impetus to the steady development of China Greece relations.

Economic and trade cooperation not only provides conditions for the orderly flow of production factors and efficient allocation of resources between China and Greece, but also creates a lot of opportunities for people to people and cultural exchanges between the two countries. Piraeus Port has become the first comprehensive port along the Mediterranean coast and the fourth largest in Europe, directly creating over 3000 job opportunities and indirectly creating more than 10000 job opportunities for the local area. By actively fulfilling social responsibilities, this project has also played a positive role in promoting people to people connectivity and promoting mutual learning among civilizations. Tourism is a pillar industry in Greece. In order to meet the increasing demand for tourism to Greece, Air China has increased its direct flights between Beijing and Athens from 3 flights per week to 5 flights per week, and Juneyao Airlines has also launched 3 direct flights per week from Shanghai to Athens.

The continuously strengthening cultural exchanges have added momentum to deepen pragmatic cooperation between China and Greece. Both China and Greece are ancient civilizations, and the two peoples have a natural sense of closeness. The continuous protection of ancient civilization and the appreciation and reference of each other's wisdom between China and Greece inject inexhaustible motivation into the continued friendship between the two sides and provide cultural nourishment for pragmatic cooperation between China and Greece. From educational cooperation to academic dialogue, from cultural exchange to youth visits, China and Greece have achieved remarkable cooperation in culture, education, tourism, and other areas. Currently, Greek universities have established four Confucius Institutes and the world's first "online Chinese language classroom"; The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Greek Rascarides Foundation established the Greek China Research Center, which provides a platform for people to people and cultural exchanges between the two countries; Multiple universities from China and Greece have collaborated to establish the China Greece Civilization Exchange Center in Athens.

China and Greece work together in the integration and interaction of economic development and cultural heritage, continuously empowering the deepening of bilateral relations. The integration and mutual promotion of economy, trade, and culture has become a distinctive feature of the development of China Greece relations. The vigorous development of bilateral relations sets an example for global cooperation and adds momentum to the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind.

(The author is the Deputy Director of the Central and Eastern European Research Laboratory at the Institute of European Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)