TRIPOLI, May 5 (Xinhua) -- COSCO Shipping, a Chinese marine transportation enterprise, announced on Monday the launch of a new shipping route between China and Benghazi, a city in eastern Libya.

Chen Xiaofeng, head of the COSCO Bulk MPP fleet, said the route operates once every two weeks, connecting Chinese coastal cities like Qingdao, Shanghai, and Guangzhou with Libya.

He added that the Guangzhou-Benghazi leg of the route takes only 25 days, transporting Chinese goods such as construction machinery and vehicles to Libya.

In his remarks at the launch ceremony, Ma Xuliang, Chinese ambassador to Libya, said China is willing to work with Libya to take this opportunity to further strengthen the alignment of development strategies between the two sides and ensure that the fruits of Belt and Road cooperation better benefit the people of both countries.

Belqasim Khalifa Haftar, director general of the Libya Development and Reconstruction Fund, said the route marks better connectivity between the two countries, adding that Libya is ready to continuously deepen bilateral trade and investment cooperation to achieve mutual benefit. ■