Sumy, Ukraine

Guiyang and Sumy sign a letter of intent to establish friendly relations during a video conference. [Photo/guiyang.gov.cn]

Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, signed a letter of intent to establish friendly relations with the city of Sumy in Northeast Ukraine during a video conference held on Oct 26.

Ma Ningyu, acting mayor of Guiyang, greeted Sumy's citizens and gave a briefing on Guiyang's social and economic development situation.

As a city with efficient traffic, abundant resources and beautiful natural scenery, Guiyang has reportedly been leading the way in the development of China's digital economy, expanding its opening-up to outside markets and achieving rapid economic growth in recent years, Ma said.

Ma added that Guiyang attached great importance to the relationship with Sumy and hoped to increase cooperation in commerce, industry, education and environmental protection.

Oleksandr Lysenko, mayor of Sumy, told the video conference his city was an industrial metropolis that maintained trade relations with various countries, with China one of its top three import countries.

Sumy is currently launching policies to attract investments and promote the construction of industrial parks there. It hopes to establish a successful, efficient and mutually beneficial partnership with Guiyang in the future.

Sumy is the capital city of Ukraine's Sumy oblast. It covers an area of 356 square kilometers, with a population of 270,000.

Moving forward, Sumy and Guiyang are expected to boost friendly exchanges and seek cooperation opportunities in the areas of city management, commerce, investment, medicine and culture.