Guiyang, capital city of Southwest China's Guizhou province, recently received letters of thanks from its sister cities for providing assistance during the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Medical materials were sent to Vicenza, Italy and Palmerston North, New Zealand from Guiyang and arrived on April 10 and 16, respectively.
According to Grant Smith, mayor of Palmerston North, Guiyang's successful experiences in epidemic prevention and control gave Palmerston North confidence to win the battle against the virus, and he sent his best wishes to Guiyang for a swift recovery over the next few months.
Since becoming sister cities in 1992, Guiyang and Palmerston North have maintained friendly exchanges and cooperation. In 2017, Grant Smith attended the 25th anniversary commemoration of being sister cities in Guiyang. In 2019, Palmerston North's vice mayor Tangi Utikere attended the China International Big Data Industry Expo held in Guiyang.
Francesco Rucco, mayor of Vicenza, said that the medical materials sent by Guiyang will help the city to get back to normal, and boost economic development. The donation represents the friendship between Guiyang and Vicenza, and laid the foundation for their future relationship.
Guiyang and Vicenza signed a memorandum on friendly cooperation in 2018. A delegation from Vicenza attended the China International Big Data Industry Expo in 2019. In April 2020, Guiyang and Vicenza started procedures for the conclusion of friendly city relations.