Italian PM Meloni pledges to ‘reboot’ bilateral relations with China

Ms Meloni described her trip as “a manifestation of the will to start a new phase, to restart bilateral cooperation”.

She also said the two countries had signed an agreement to promote cooperation on electric vehicles and renewable energy.

In a statement issued by his office, Premier Li said the two countries aim to strengthen “mutually beneficial cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises in the fields of shipbuilding, aerospace, new energy, and artificial intelligence.”

Italy is the only major Western country to join the BRI, one of China’s most ambitious trade and infrastructure projects.

The move was heavily criticized by the United States and several major Western countries at the time.

Since taking office 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 described the previous government’s decision to join the initiative as “a serious mistake”.

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

Rome also backed the European Commission’s recent move to impose tariffs of up to 37.6% on electric vehicles imported from China.

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