Chinese President Xi Jinping has wrapped up his first visit abroad this year to Europe. The six-day trip has taken him to Italy, Monaco and France. During his stay in Rome, the Chinese leader held talks with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. The two witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding to implement the Belt and Road Initiative. Xi's trip to Monaco was the first visit by a Chinese president to the country. The two sides vowed to strengthen ties. The Chinese leader also met with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in Paris. Both agreed to enhance cooperation while promoting multilateralism. Earlier my colleague Juliet Mann sat down with Doctor Yu Jie, a research fellow at Chatham House. This is what she had to say about the visit.

JULIET MANN CGTN "Italy is the first G7 country to sign up to the BRI initiative, what does it mean for other major European economies?"

YU JIE RESEARCH FELLOW AT CHATHAM HOUSE "I think the other major economies in Europe will probably have to rethink their ties with China. We are in trade negotiation with the U.S. and EU has been the largest, one of the largest trading partners with China, I think President Xi is looking for consolidate that partnership. In short term, Chinese economy is slowing down. But in long term BRI is not something only happens 5-10 years, its something 20, 30, 50 years, we need to have subscribers to the BRI."