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Foreign and Military Affairs

Chinese premier arrives in Athens for visit

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-10-02 19:15

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ATHENS - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived here Saturday, kicking off his three-day official visit to Greece.

The Greece visit, the first stop of Wen's four-nation Europe tour, is the first by a Chinese premier in 24 years.

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During his stay, Premier Wen is due to meet Greek President Karolos Papoulias and Parliament Speaker Philippos Petsalnikos and hold talks with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou before witnessing the signing of a series of deals. Wen will also deliver a speech in the Greek parliament on China-Greece and China-EU relations.

"Coping with the financial crisis will be an important topic for talks between Wen and Greek leaders. We have a positive attitude about the measures taken by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund," Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying said earlier on Wen's Greece visit. Greece's sovereign debt crisis triggered fears of a domino effect across the eurozone earlier this year.

"We have noticed that the Greek government has adopted measures which have been effective. We hope Greece will recover soon from the difficulties," Fu said.

Chinese Ambassador to Greece Luo Linquan said: "Once again, the premier will send a clear signal to the world that China will give a vote of confidence in the economic prospects of Greece and that China is taking practical action to assist Greece and the European Union in overcoming the crisis."

The four-nation visit, lasting till Oct 9, will also take Wen to Belgium, Italy and Turkey. Wen will also attend the 8th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and the 13th China-European Union (EU) summit in Brussels from Oct 4 to 6.