The mayors of Athens and Shanghai have signed a twinning agreement between the two cities, a move they say will boost cooperation in tourism, culture and several other areas.
Athens Mayor Haris Doukas welcomed his Shanghai counterpart, Gong Zheng, to Athens City Hall for the signing of the agreement, which signals the even closer and productive cooperation developed by the two cities, as they have already signed four memoranda of cooperation since 2009.
“Shanghai and Athens, China and Greece, are two regions with an important geostrategic character. We are convinced that, remaining dedicated to international cooperation, the only thing that separates us is the physical distance. We aspire, with our joint actions, to overcome this obstacle,” Doukas said.
“The two cities are connected by a centuries-old cultural tradition, close commercial, economic and business relations, which create a solid foundation for the development and prosperity of our wider regions. Our common goal is to strengthen our ties. We invite our Chinese friends to visit Greece and experience the unique Athenian experience. To get to know at close hand the monuments of world cultural heritage, but also modern Greek cultural creation, which builds bridges between our peoples”.
On his part, Zheng said that since “the establishment of relations of friendly exchanges between Shanghai and Athens in 2009, there has been extensive and pragmatic cooperation in many fields and it has achieved good results.
“Taking the twinning of our two cities as a new starting point, we are willing to further deepen the exchanges and interactions between our two localities, achieve an even higher level of mutual benefit and win-win results, to pursue greater prosperity for the peoples of our two lands, and finally, to jointly promote friendly exchanges and cooperation between Shanghai and Athens to a new level.”