The 10th China-EU Leaders Meeting was held in Beijing Wednesday,
where leaders from both China and the European Union (EU) outlined
their future strategic partnership and discussed other pragmatic
issues.
Premier Wen Jiabao(C), Prime
Minister Jose Socrates of Portugal (L), who currently holds
rotating presidency of the European Union, and European Commission
President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso (R) hold the 10th China-EU
Leaders Meeting Wednesday in Beijing.
The yearly summit was attended by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao,
Prime Minister Jose Socrates of Portugal, who currently holds
rotating presidency of the European Union, and European Commission
President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso.
Over the past decade China-EU ties have witnessed the fastest
development in history, mutually beneficial cooperation has
produced rich results, and the ties now have reached an
unprecedented level in width and depth, Wen said during the
meeting.
Discussing the Renminbi exchange rate issue, trade imbalance,
climate change, and energy cooperation, both sides touched upon all
the core issues in the China-EU relations with a pragmatic and open
attitude.
During the two-hour summit meeting, both sides agreed to
properly handle any disputes through dialogue and negotiation so as
to seek balance of trade and push China-EU relations to a new
height.
During the meeting, Wen made a four-point proposal to better
outline future ties. One aspect of this describes how the two sides
should improve the structure of trade, expand trade volume, and
properly handle the problems in bilateral trade.
Wen proposed to maintain close high-level contacts and have
prompt exchanges on bilateral and global issues, making full use of
the current dialogue mechanism.
He said the two sides should speed up negotiations on a new
Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, which was started last
January to replace the outdated 1985 Trade and Economic Cooperation
Agreement.
Wen also proposed making a common working plan on China-EU
sci-tech cooperation, signing an educational exchanges and
cooperation agreement as soon as possible, implementing the working
plan on cultural dialogue and cooperation, and strengthening
practical cooperation in the fields of climate change, energy, and
environmental protection.
Trade and economic cooperation have become powerful engines for
the development of the China-EU Comprehensive Strategic
Partnership, while trade imbalance emerged as a major issue amid
developing bilateral relations.
"We have and will continue to put in place measures aimed at
expanding imports and promoting a more balanced bilateral trade,"
Wen said in a speech at the 4th China-EU Business Summit before the
China-EU Leaders' Meeting on Wednesday afternoon.
He proposed setting up a vice-premier level of dialogue
mechanism to help resolve disputes in bilateral trade. Chinese
Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said China's proposal has
received approval from the EU and the mechanism is likely to be
established after March 2008.
In addition, Wen proposed establishing a financial cooperation
mechanism to deal with specific issues in the financial field, and
both sides agreed to carry out relevant studies shortly, Liu
said.
Wen promised China would continue to expand market access to
foreign countries in accordance with prevailing international
economic and trade rules.
The EU is the largest trade partner and export market for China,
and China is the EU's second largest trading partner. Bilateral
trade volume has quadrupled over the past decade and is expected to
exceed 330 billion U.S. dollars this year.
Socrates said the EU-China strategic partnership benefits
Europe, China, and the rest of the world, and the EU appreciates
China's active role in helping to solve the nuclear issue on the
Korean Peninsula, the Iranian nuclear issue, and other major
international and regional issues.
Meanwhile, Barroso said the EU hopes to continuously add
momentum to the EU-China dialogue mechanism, and solve issues of
common concern through joint efforts.
The two European leaders said the EU adheres to the one-China
policy and doesn't support Taiwan's proposed referendum on UN
membership, which they said is an action to change Taiwan's status
quo.
"I think leaders from both sides had an in-depth discussion on
the root cause and solutions to current problems that will give
far-reaching guidance to further promote mutual trust and deepen
cooperation," said Feng Zhongping, a researcher with the China
Institute of Contemporary International Relations.
"To continue pushing forward China-EU relations on the track of
stable and sound development serves the common interests of both
sides," Feng said.
On China-EU relations, Chinese President Hu Jintao gave his
account Wednesday afternoon when meeting with Socrates and
Barroso.
Hu said the China-EU relationship is at a key stage of
inheriting the past and ushering in the future, and it is the
common responsibility and mission for China and the EU to grasp the
general direction and lay out strategic plans for further
developing bilateral ties and jointly shaping a better future for
both sides.
Premier Wen Jiabao delivers a speech
during the fourth China-European Union (EU) Business Summit.
(Xinhua News Agency November 29, 2007)
