Taiyuan, capital of North China's Shanxi province, and Viseu in Portugal hold an online signing ceremony for a letter of intent to establish a sister city relationship on Aug 17. [Photo/shanxi.gov.cn]

Taiyuan, capital of North China's Shanxi province, and Viseu in Portugal held an online signing ceremony for a letter of intent to establish a sister city relationship on Aug 17.

Zhang Xinwei and Fernando Ruas, mayors of the two cities, delivered speeches at the online ceremony. 

Zhang introduced Taiyuan to the Portuguese side, saying that Taiyuan has a long history, pleasant scenery and climate, strong industrial foundation and broad development prospects. 

Taiyuan representatives of the meeting pose for a group photo. [Photo/shanxi.gov.cn]

Fernando Ruas said that Viseu and Taiyuan have many similarities in terms of historical heritage, sustainable development, education and social integration. 

He expressed the hope that the two sides will deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, science and technology, culture, education, sports, and health, as well as promote common development. 

The city of Viseu is the capital and a vital agricultural and educational center of the district of the same name in central Portugal. It is rich in tourism attractions and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. It has industrial strength in textiles, automobiles, agricultural product processing and information technology. 

It will soon become Taiyuan's 13th international sister city.