Athens' 'Eleftherios Venizelos' International Airport (AIA) and COSCO will promote a combined sea-air transport service through simplified procedures to attract more transit cargos, taking advantage of the country's significant geographical position.

The partnership agreement between AIA and Piraeus Cargo Terminal, managed by COSCO for a period of 35 years, was signed during the recent visit by the Chinese Premier in Athens, and has already entered the implementation phase.

The deal aims to cover the wider Middle East region, initially, and North America and Canada at a later stage. The main products will be textiles, machinery, electronics and vulnerable products.

Alexis Sioris, the airport's cargo development manager, said that Athens Airport is the only airport in Europe to develop combined sea-air transport. The deal with COSCO will further enhance AIA's transport services and positively affect the commercial business.

Captain Fu, chief executive of Piraeus Cargo Terminal, speaking to reporters said: "We are here in Greece to invest. If we unite Greek intelligence with Chinese mentality we will be able to achieve our main goal, which is offering better services to customers".