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2020 was an extremely difficult year for Italy and China-Italy relations. The sudden outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic pushed Italy into the “darkest moment”. The public health crisis triggered the most serious economic recession and social difficulties since the end of World War II. It also highlighted a series of deep-seated problems and vulnerabilities in the national system of Italy in an unprecedented way. In 2020，the fight against the epidemic has become the biggest politics. The Italian government tries carefully to seek a balance between “anti-epidemic”，“preserving the economy” and “stabilizing society”，and the living conditions and the psychology of the people have also withstood the most severe impact since the end of World War II. In response to the impact of the epidemic，the Italian government has successively issued a number of laws and emergency rescue measures. However，these measures are a “double-edged sword”. While avoiding large-scale social unrest and creating conditions for economic recovery，they also aggravated the country’s long-standing public debt problem，laying hidden trouble for long-term economic growth. In addition，the epidemic has also prompted the Italian government and major ruling parties to begin to deeply reflect on the shortcomings of the country’s public health system. Long-ignored issues were discussed publicly，and related reforms have also been put on the agenda. In terms of foreign policy，during the epidemic，the relationship between Italy and the EU experienced a process of change from intensified tensions to improvement. The introduction of the Next Generation EU Plan further eased the relationship between Italy and the EU. At the same time，Italy’s strategy of seeking a balance between China and the US also faced new challenge. The General Report in the Annual Development Report of Italy （2020-2021） takes the “Italy under the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic：Striving forward in the Crisis” as its subject，aiming at outlining the development of Italy in 2020 from the perspectives of politics，economy，society，foreign relations，China-Italy relations，and so on.

Regarding the situation of Italy in 2020，the Annual Development Report of Italy （2020-2021） makes a comprehensive review and analysis from four aspects：politics，economy，society and foreign relations. In 2020，the Italian government has maintained stability. The series of economic and social rescue measures issued by the Italian government have alleviated the “urgent thirst” caused by the epidemic，but they have also laid “distant worries” for long-term economic growth. Italy’s foreign policy this year was also closely related to COVID-19 pandemic and its domestic and international impact.

The Special Reports focus on the evolution and current reforms of the Italian electoral system，the development and the characteristics of Italy’s agriculture and the impact of COVID-19，Italy’s tourism sector under the impact of COVID-19，Italy’s income support policies in response to COVID-19 pandemic，the development and characteristics of Italian higher art education system，and the legal protection mechanism of Italian family firms’ governance. These issues are either related to the major changes currently taking place in Italy，or are closely related to the prospects of Italy and China-Italy relations in the post pandemic era. The relevant combing and analysis can help us understand better the current development status of various fields in Italy.

2020 was the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy. In this year，affected by factors such as increased tensions in China-US relations and partisan struggles in Italy，there were occasional “noises” in the development of China-Italy relations. However，in general，through mutual support in the fight against the epidemic and active cooperation in the resumption of work and production，China-Italy relationship has withstood the test of the epidemic. Pragmatic cooperation，mutual benefit and win-win results are still the mainstream and the general direction of the future. In the “China and Italy” Section in the Annual Development Report of Italy （2020-2021），Four reports are presented. These reports focus on Chinese education in Italian national education system，the history and the current situation of Chinese immigrants in Italy，China-Italy cooperation in civil aviation and tourism sectors in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative and a review of China-Italy cooperation in the context of COVID-19 pandemic，trying to deepen the understanding of the current situation of China-Italy relations.

On the whole，the Annual Development Report of Italy （2020-2021） reflects Italy’s overall situation，major events and progress in important areas in 2020 and tries to make an in-depth analysis of the new development of China-Italy relations and cooperation.

Finally，it should be pointed out that，the Annual Development Report of Italy （2020-2021） continues to adopt the China-Italy cooperation approach. In addition to Chinese scholars，four Italian experts from well-known Italian think tanks and universities are invited to contribute to this book. It is hoped that this form of cooperation will help the readers understand more comprehensively and objectively the situation of Italy and the development of China-Italy relations.