Greek Leader Welcomes Chinese Investments

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Thursday that he believed Greece could be a significant commercial gateway for China into Europe.

Speaking on board a Chinese warship visiting the Greek port of Piraeus, Tsipras welcomed China's existing investments in his country.

China's COSCO manages part of Piraeus docks, but the government of Tsipras, a radical left-winger, has halted privatization of the port which had been agreed with the country's EU/IMF creditors.

"We give special importance to the existing Chinese investments in Greece including the important activities of COSCO at Piraeus Port," he said while visiting the warship.

The government halted the sale of its two biggest ports, Piraeus and Thessaloniki.

Under a privatization scheme last year, COSCO had been shortlisted, along with four other suitors, as a potential buyer of a stake of 67 percent in the Piraeus port.