Annita Demetriou, the President of the Cypriot House of Representatives, expressed her desire to strengthen collaborations with China in trade and education while calling for the resolution of differences and the pursuit of mutual prosperity between China and Europe.
Demetriou, heading a large delegation of parliamentary and political members from the Mediterranean nation, is in China from Oct. 8 to 13. Her itinerary features stops in the capital Beijing and the mega city Shenzhen in southern China.
During an interview in Beijing on Friday, the speaker remarked that the two countries have maintained a strong and friendly relationship for decades, expressing her hope that this visit will enhance their bilateral connections.
"It is the first time that we do have such a broad representation, along with the other parliamentary and political leaders. It is the message that we want to convey that we want to invest to enrich our bilateral relations with China. As you know, since 1971, we have very good friendly and strong ties with China, but we do believe that there is ground for strengthening [them]," said Demetriou.
In 2021, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, China and Cyprus agreed to upgrade their relationship to a strategic partnership.
Building on that boost to relations, Demetriou expressed hope that the strong presence of Chinese businesses in her country could grow even more robust.
"We are at a very good point, but I do believe that still there is ground for prosperity and even more connectivity to be accomplished between us. This is exactly where we need to work and see what more we can do. We have seen, for example, over the years, that we have a lot of Chinese companies in Cyprus, but we believe we can have some more. We even discussed that it is about time for Air China and connectivity to be enforced in Cyprus, and by that we're going to have more tourists and opportunities for investments," said the speaker.
Cyprus is a key partner in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In 2019, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on BRI cooperation, accelerating bilateral practical collaboration. In 2023, the bilateral trade volume between the two nations approached 1 billion U.S. dollars. "Cyprus has supported the Belt and Road Initiative for all these years. However, we do believe there is ground to strengthen even more all these collaborations in certain levels, [such as] economic, trade, and education. And I'm so glad we managed to visit a university in Beijing. So, even though we do have a lot of MoUs between us, now it is the time to invest even more with specific initiatives," said Demetriou.
As a representative of an EU member country, Demetriou hopes that the misunderstandings or disagreements between China and Europe can be addressed, and a better relationship that benefits both sides will be achieved.
"(We should) find a proper way for prosperous collaboration between them, that is going to be for the benefit of the European Union and China. We need to realize that China is a very important actor. If I'm not mistaken, the following year we will celebrate 50 years of good relations between China and the EU. So let's lift any obstacles, any barriers, any misunderstandings, and let's invest in harmonizing those relationships for the mutual benefit of all," she said.
'Now is the time' for Cyprus to invest in stronger ties with China: parliamentary speaker
