Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is scheduled to visit China for five days in her first official visit since she took office two years ago, Beijing said in a statement on Thursday. 

"At the invitation of Premier Li Qiang of the State Council, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will pay an official visit to China from July 27 to 31," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, adding that meetings with both President Xi Jinping and Premier Li have been set. 

Reportedly, Meloni and the Chinese leaders will discuss bilateral relations between Italy and China, as well as "issues of common concern", affirming that Beijing was looking to "deepen practical cooperation and cultural exchange, and promote the steady and long-term development of China-Italy and China-Europe relations."

In December, Italy withdrew from China's Belt and Road Initiative, more than four years after becoming the only G7 nation to sign up, a government source said. No other details were provided by the source beyond saying it was done in such a way as to "keep channels of political dialogue open."

This came amid Meloni's consistent intention to withdraw from the BRI, claiming it does not serve Italy's interests. 

Despite its withdrawal, Italy affirmed its intentions to maintain positive relations with China, saying G7 nations that are not part of the BRI remain close to China regardless.

China says no to undermining the BRI as Italy drops out

In December last year, Wang Wenbin, the spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, made a statement condemning the derogation and sabotage of collaborative efforts within the Belt and Road Initiative, in response to Italy's decision to withdraw from the project.

The announcement of Italy's exit was reported by the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani expressing dissatisfaction with the outcomes of Italy's involvement in the initiative.

Wang emphasized China's firm stance against "denigrating and undermining the cooperation in jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative" and stated that China "opposes bloc confrontation and artificially creating divisions." Wang highlighted the significance of the initiative, which has brought together over 150 nations in the past decade, making it the largest platform for international cooperation in the contemporary world.