President Xi Jinping (L) meets with Hamburg's mayor Olaf Scholz in Hamburg, Germany, July 6, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

HAMBURG, Germany - China welcomes Hamburg to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative and stands ready to strengthen pragmatic cooperation with this major German port city to help boost the relations between the two countries, President Xi Jinping said Thursday.

Xi made the remarks while meeting with Hamburg Mayor Olaf Scholz ahead of the annual summit of the Group of Twenty (G20) major economies scheduled for July 7-8 in the northern German city. Xi arrived here Thursday noon from Berlin after paying a state visit to Germany. He was received by Mayor Scholz at the airport.

Xi said that Hamburg in history was one of the earliest European cities that started cooperation with China, and it is today an important bridgehead in China-Germany and China-Europe cooperation, which gathers most Chinese-funded businesses in Germany and even in Europe at large.

Hamburg enjoys a unique geographical advantage in Asia-Europe connectivity and the Belt and Road Initiative as it is not only an important port along the China-Europe Maritime Silk Road but also an important terminal for China-Europe freight trains, the president said.

China appreciates Mayor Scholz's remarks on multiple occasions that Hamburg is always open to Chinese businesses, Xi said.

China supports Germany in hosting a successful G20 summit and hopes more positive outcomes can be achieved on the basis of last year's summit in Hangzhou, China, and a "Hamburg hallmark" can be left on global economic governance.

Scholz said that Hamburg has an outstanding position in Germany-China and Europe-China trade, and the city supports the Belt and Road Initiative and is willing to participate in cooperation in this regard.