Xi looks into agriculture and investment during visit to Ireland

 

Chinese vice president Xi Jinping has wrapped up his visit to Ireland with a rather fruitful day, infusing confidence back into the Eurozone and a local Irish dairy farm.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (L) meets with Irish President Michael D. Higgins in Dublin, capital of Ireland, Feb. 20, 2012. [Xinhua]

It was all business for The Chinese Vice president as he began his trip around Ireland. Xi Jinping launched his 3 day tour at the Shannon Economic Zone. He was accompanied by a 150 strong delegation of government and business leaders.

The visit seemed to make a particular impression on The Emerald Isle's Deputy Minister.

Ireland is facing uncertain economic times as the eurozone crisis drags on, so the visit and meeting with Irish PM Enda Kenny was an important moment of much needed reassurance.

Reiterating China's commitment to Europe, Xi said the Chinese government was considering boosting investment in the European Financial Stability Facility and European Stability Mechanism - which Europe is counting on as key tools to help solve its crisis.

But it was not all staid and stately business - Xi also took in some more pastoral settings. At a local dairy farm on the west coast of Ireland, Xi, also a farming expert, inspected the techniques used on the farm and had a newborn calf named after him.

Irish Farmer's Association President John Bryan described Xi's visit as hugely significant. The country has long been a major dairy exporter, and in particular it is the largest exporter of infant formula in the world - sending 85 million Euros worth of formula to China in 2010.

And dairy farmers are hoping this visit will send those numbers even higher.