Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a grand welcome ceremony hosted by his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella before their talks in Rome on March 22.

At the invitation of President Sergio Mattarella of the Republic of Italy, Head of State Prince Albert II of the Principality of Monaco and President Emmanuel Macron of the Republic of France, Chinese President Xi Jinping paid state visits to Italy, Monaco and France from March 21 to 26.

At the end of the visit, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that President Xi's first overseas visit of the year ushered in a new journey for China's relations with Italy, Monaco and France, pushed forward the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative to open up new space in the Eurasian continent and injected new impetus into the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership. President Xi's Europe visit was committed to deepening partnership, improving global governance and upholding multilateralism, and it reflected China's sense of responsibility as a major country and has been highly appraised by the public at home and abroad. It was a journey of friendship, cooperation and exploration to deepen East-West relations, leaving beautiful memories and achieving fruitful outcomes.