China backing euro, says Premier Wen
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Premier Wen Jiabao said on Sunday that China will work closely with the European Union (EU) as well as directly with Greece to tide over the once-in-a-century financial crisis.
China's commitment to advancing China-EU relations "is not an expediency, but a long-term strategic policy", the premier said during a speech at the Greek parliament.
Wen also stated in clear terms that China will not reduce its holdings of euro bonds and said it supports a stable euro.
"We sent trade and investment promotion missions to Europe and signed a series of important trade and investment contracts," he said, noting that the initiatives were specific examples of China's efforts to help Europe overcome its financial difficulties.
When talking about the bilateral Sino-Greek relationship, Wen drew upon many famous names and old sayings, from both China and Greece, to illustrate how the two great ancient civilizations had experienced trials and tribulations throughout their history but had never been deterred nor defeated.
"The shining names of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and Archimedes have left a permanent mark in the annals of human civilization," said the premier, who added that he had been fascinated and inspired by stories about ancient Greece ever since he was a boy.
Socrates once said that adversity is the best school to temper one's willpower, Wen noted. He said there was a similar saying in China: Out of hardship grows success.
Wen was referring to the ongoing financial crisis that hit Greece very hard, largely because of its reliance on shipping and tourism - two industries that were severely affected by the economic downturn.
He said he was pleased to note that Greece was coming out of the shadow of a sovereign debt crisis.
"Your financial market is stabilizing, the fiscal deficit is fast coming down, investors' confidence is returning and the prospect of recovery is encouraging," he said.
To help Greece overcome its debt crisis, he said China is supporting measures taken by the EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and will set up special initiatives to support Greek ship owners buying vessels from China.
In May, Greece reached a loan agreement with other eurozone countries and the IMF for 110 billion euros.
While meeting with his Greek counterpart, George Papandreou, on Saturday, Wen said China has been holding Greek government bonds and will buy more to help the country recover from the financial crisis.
The range of steps and support has helped Greece make progress. The country's budget deficit fell 32.3 percent between January and August, exceeding the country's target of 26.5 percent.
Wen also said that China will work with Greece to manage the container terminal in Piraeus, the biggest port in Greece, and increase its capacity from today's 1.6 million to 3.7 million containers by 2015.
