Promoter of “The New Marco Polo Program Mr. Laspina returned to China in 2003 as the chief representativeof the Italian Government Foreign Trade commission Beijing Office，taking charge like a “duke” who carries considerable authority in theregion. “The government gives you the position， but you have to fillthe role yourself. The greater your capabilities， the more roles you canplay. The position itself is not as important as the role you play. It iswhat you do， not what position you hold， that decides whether you aresuccessful，” he said. “China is a country with great potential for economicdevelopment. It’s quite challenging working here， but you willhave a great sense of achievement if you fulfill your role in this country. A Chinese saying goes： “Keep thy shop and thy shop will keepthee” and a Western proverb says： “An opportunity favors the preparedhead.” This is exactly the case with Mr. Laspina who has worked withgreat enthusiasm and gained rich experience. With his deep understandingof Chinese culture and its economic situation， Mr. Laspinahas carried out his ICE career in China as planned， without a hitch.
The year 2003 saw the SARS epidemic， but Mr. Laspina didn’
t seem to worry about it too much. “Many people from other countriesthought China’s economic development would slow down as a result.
Even some Chinese thought that. I was quite confident that Chinawould get over this difficult period since the Chinese are hard-workingpeople. It turned out just as I expected. Great changes have taken placein China， while the economy has developed at a sustained high speed. He was a bit pleased with himself for his prediction.
“Some thought the work in China would be very hard for me.
In fact， the going was very smooth. It was so smooth that it seemedsimply extraordinary to other people. But to me it was the naturalresult of years of efforts. The Italian Foreign Trade commission，which was established in 1965， has built up a good reputation andbroad social connections in China. With such a sound foundation， it78 is not hard at all for me to carry out my mission here. Chinese peoplehave much in common with Italians in their values and their ways ofconducting themselves in society. If you are open-minded and treatothers sincerely， then you will be treated sincerely with open mind，too. Chinese people value faithfulness very highly， just as the Italiansdo.” He has won a lot of friends with his sincerity and faithfulnessand has achieved many fruitful results. The Chinese often say， “Goodheartedness is always rewarded.” It seems that Mr. Laspina hasgrasped the quintessence of this saying.
China and Italy are both countries with long histories and splendidcivilizations. He works hard to advocate East-West cultural exchangeand to open up new channels of mutual understanding， trustand mutual benefit. He spares no effort in organizing all kinds ofactivities to promote friendship and economic cooperation betweenthe two. “I am not a businessman， but a government official who isbuilding a bridge linking the two countries. I introduce China to Italianbusinessmen and tell them it is the best time to do business here.
At the same time I also lobby the Chinese government to pay attentionto its economic and trade cooperation with Italy. During these bilateralintroductions， I never talk big， never exaggerate and try my bestto urge them to observe and to learn from their experience. I offer assistanceto Chinese doing business in Italy and Italians doing businessin China. Sometimes I even use personal connections to help them.
Anyway， it is never difficult to solve problems if you make both sidesrealize that it’s meaningful and practical.” Mr. Laspina’s efforts areeven more important at a time when there are frequent trade conflictsbetween EU and China.
“I always hold the viewpoint that economic trade is simply culturalexchange conducted in the form of currency. China and Italyshare a lot in common in their cultures： We esteem family values，treasure friendship and prefer innovation and exploration. Both peoplesare adept at creation and like beautiful things. Just as Italiansloved Chinese silk and porcelain hundreds of years ago， Chinese peoplenow are fond of fashionable clothing and autos made in Italy. Eachcountry attracts more and more tourists from the other. All these facts show that we appreciate each other’s scenery and cultural relics. He places great importance on the news media and never turnsdown their requests for interviews. He grasps these good opportunitiesto promote his Italian way of thinking. His Italian sense of humor andhis ability to promote are well received in the Chinese mass media，and thus add impetus to trade and economic connections.
The Italian Association of Printing， Paper-Making and PackingIndustry brought four companies to Beijing to seek business opportunities.