In April 2025, Ambassador Frances Galatia Lanitou Williams of Cyprus to China paid her first official visit to Chengdu, Sichuan, witnessing Chengdu’s economic and social development. During her visit, Ambassador Lanitou attended the Opening Ceremony of 2025 Chengdu Europe Culture Season & European Culture Street, where she proactively explored opportunities for cooperation with Chengdu in numerous areas, such as friendship city relations, higher education, green energy, cultural tourism, and economic and trade investment. The visit forged new connections to strengthen friendly relations between the two countries and enhance their cooperation and exchanges.

 

 

On the morning of April 10, Ambassador Lanitou explored the School of Public Administration, libraries, and Electronic Science and Technology Museum during her visit to the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC). UESTC has previously established friendly relations with the University of Cyprus, leading to a series of fruitful academic initiatives. During her visit, Ambassador Lanitou engaged with faculty and students, gaining insights into UESTC’s achievements in research application, database development, and the role of the Key Laboratory for Intelligence and Digital Public Governance of the School of Public Administration in promoting the commercialization and application of research outcomes. Following her visits, Ambassador Lanitou engaged in discussions with UESTC, delving into opportunities for summer schools, international conventions, people-to-people exchanges, and other areas.

 

 

In the afternoon, Ambassador Lanitou visited Chengdu Environment Group for Chengdu Wanxing WTE Project Phase II Plant, the largest waste-to-energy project in Sichuan. The plant, located in Chengdu Chang’an Jingmai Industrial Park, primarily focuses on the disposal of household waste in Chengdu’s main urban area. The exhibition hall, featuring comprehensive data, convincing cases, and intuitive models, provided Ambassador Lanitou with a thorough understanding of the group’s innovative approaches and practices in solid waste management, urban environmental governance, green development, and other fields.

 

 

On the same day, Ambassador Lanitou engaged in in-depth discussions with officials from the Foreign Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Chengdu Municipality to explore avenues for enhancing exchanges, cooperation, and friendly engagement between Chengdu and Cyprus across multiple sectors.

 

On April 11, Ambassador Lanitou held a meeting with Zhao Jian, Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Chengdu Municipal Committee and Deputy Mayor of the People’s Government of Chengdu Municipality. They acknowledged that the strategic partnership between China and Cyprus has consistently maintained a high level of development, while deep-rooted friendship and robust mutual political trust have laid a solid foundation for their cooperation. In this context, they expressed their aspiration to proactively explore and promote pragmatic cooperation in various areas, including the development of friendship city relations, green energy, academic exchanges, trade and investment, cultural tourism, and sports. With their commitment, they anticipated achieving mutual benefits and win-win outcomes by fully leveraging their respective strengths.

 

 

Following the meeting, Ambassador Lanitou visited Tongwei Group. Through a visit of the group’s exhibition center, Ambassador Lanitou gained deep insights into Chengdu’s comprehensive industrial chain strategy and innovative practices in the green energy sector, encompassing research and development, production, application, and promotion. From battery technology R&D to the efficient advancement of power plant construction, more photovoltaic application scenarios have been realized, reflecting the robust development momentum of Chengdu’s photovoltaic industry. The flourishing green energy industry in Chengdu offered Ambassador Lanitou a promising outlook for future cooperation.

 

 

On April 12, Ambassador Lanitou attended the Opening Ceremony of 2025 Chengdu Europe Culture Season & European Culture Street. The event, with decorations featuring a vibrant European cultural ambiance, captivating cultural performances, and a variety of culinary delights, offered Chengdu residents a remarkable cultural celebration. Ambassador Lanitou visited Cyprus’s booth at the European Culture Street and warmly engaged with the booth staff and volunteers.

 

 

During her visit to Chengdu, Ambassador Lanitou visited Chengdu’s landmarks, including Chengdu Museum, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, and Chengdu Planning Exhibition Hall, further immersing herself in Chengdu’s unique ecological beauty and cultural heritage.

 

In recent years, China and Cyprus have been deepening their traditional friendship, while their strategic partnership has maintained a high level of development. Currently, Chengdu, focusing on the development of a park city demonstration zone exercising the new development philosophy, is creating new opportunities for cooperation between China and Europe through high-quality development and high-level opening up. Ambassador Lanitou’s visit to Chengdu has provided a new dialogue opportunity for cooperation in multiple key areas. Leveraging this opportunity, Chengdu aspires to deepen strategic alignment with Cyprus, thoroughly explore their cooperative potentials across various areas, and jointly write a new chapter of win-win cooperation between China and Cyprus.

 

Edited by Zhang Yuanlin

Source:Chengdu Discovery