On November 2, 2021, Ambassador Liu Shaobin paid a visit to Izmir, during which he met with Mr. Doğan, Deputy Governor of Izmir Province and Mr. Soyer, Mayor of Izmir City respectively. The two sides exchanged views on China-Turkey relations and exchanges at the local level between the two countries. Ambassador Liu stated that with the deepening of China-Turkey relations, the exchanges and cooperation between Izmir and China have continued to expand in recent years and China has participated in Izmir International Fair as guest country for many times. China’s Jiangsu Province and Izmir Province are sister provinces, and many Chinese cities such as Tianjin, Wuhan, Xiamen and Chengdu have established sister-city relations with city of Izmir. It is hoped that the two sides will further strengthen exchanges, tap potential and expand areas of cooperation so as to promote deeper and more concrete local cooperation between the two countries.

Deputy Governor Doğan and Mayor Soyer said that Izmir is Turkey’s third largest city and one of its important industrial, foreign trade and shipping centers. With Aegean Free Trade Zone and many natural ports, Izmir boasts great investment environment. Izmir provincial and municipal governments attache great importance to their cooperation with China, and are ready to work with China to further enhance exchanges and cooperation in the fields of trade, investment, clean energy, culture, education and sister-city exchanges.

During the visit, Ambassador Liu also attended China-Turkey Culture and Business Symposium hosted by Izmir Overseas Chinese Association to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.