A delegation from the French-speaking channel of China’s CCTV network and a delegation from China Radio International (CRI) met, on 21 September, with the General Secretary for Media and Communication, Mr Lefteris Kretsos and executives of the Greek Public Broadcaster (ERT), at the premises of the Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Media ministry in Athens.

Welcoming the two Chinese delegations, Mr Kretsos said that China is a strategic partner for Greece, not only for economic reasons but also due to the cultural depth of relations between the two countries. He moreover noted that the media is a privileged sector for further deepening these relations, stressing the role of public television as a bridge for enhancing mutual understanding between the two peoples.

In the discussion that followed, CCTV and ERT executives reviewed extensively plans for a documentary on Byzantium's relations with China. This is a co-production of ERT and CCTV, following through the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras during his visit to Beijing in July 2016, which paves the way for broadening cooperation and co-production between the two sides.

The second meeting with CRI executives highlighted the need to extend the already existing cooperation between the two countries’ public television and news agencies in the field of radio, through the exchange of technology and know-how, the promotion of culture (eg music), storage and digitization of content.

Both sides agreed to promote the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation in the radio sector and to set up working groups that would work out the details for the realization of cooperation proposals.