A delegation led by Qiangba Puncog, chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of China's Tibet Autonomous Region, met with Italian parliament members here Wednesday.

During the meeting, Qiangba Puncog said Tibet has made remarkable achievements in social, economic and cultural development since its peaceful liberation in 1951.

However, he acknowledged that Tibet is still less developed compared with China's coastal regions, saying that China's central government has decided to focus on speeding up Tibet's development.

"During the 12th Five-Year Plan period, a total investment of 330 billion yuan will be made in Tibet to support local economic construction," he said.

Referring to an Italian aid project in Tibet, he said "Italy made an investment of some 4 million U.S. dollars in 1981 to help build a geothermal power station in Tibet, then in the early 1990s, Italy made another investment to reconstruct the power plant."

The plant, which has continuously provided electric power for Lhasa and surrounding areas for over 30 years, played a significant role in promoting local development, the Chinese lawmaker said.

Lamberto Dini, president of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Italian Senate, said that during his first visit to China in 1985, the many bicycles in Beijing during rush hour had made a great impression on him. As time went by, the number of cars gradually increased in Beijing, leading to a reduction in the number of bicycles.

"I think this change illustrated China's development from the year of 1985 to now," Dini said.

Moreover, he said Italy respects China's development and that the Chinese government pays attention to balanced development as it not only gives financial support to coastal areas, but to underdeveloped regions as well.

Giuseppe Menardi, president of the Association of Friends of China of the Italian parliament, said he was amazed by the landscape when he traveled from Xining to Lhasa by train.

"Tibetan history, culture, environment and religion have a unique appeal for the Western people," Menardi said.