President Xi’s European Visit Signals New Era of China-EU Cooperation

By+ZHAO+JINJUN

LAST March， President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to four European countries – the Netherlands， France， Germany and Belgium， and also visited the headquarters of UNESCO and the EU.

During the 11-day visit， Xis first to Europe since taking office， he attended 84 events – around 8 a day – and signed over 120 cooperation agreements. He was given a warm welcome and accorded the highest standards of courtesy. A great success， the visit has comprehensively upgraded friendly cooperation between China and the EU. As a priority on Chinas 2014 diplomatic calendar， it also reflected Chinas high estimation of the EU.

Bilateral Relations that Signify a New Strategic View

China and the EU committed in their joint statement to building new partnerships for peace， growth， reform and civilization. The document blueprinted more practical and specific details for cooperation in the bilateral relationship. At its core is connecting China and the EU –two powers， two markets and two civilizations that make up one tenth of the earths area， one fourth of the worlds population and one third of the global economic aggre-gate. Both， therefore take a leading role in international affairs.

The visit signifies deepening mutual trust on a political level， broader economic cooperation and a stronger ideological partnership – altogether an alliance of strategic significance. To express its high estimation of the EU China published its second policy paper in this regard– Chinas Policy Paper on the EU： Deepen China-EU Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Mutual Benefit and Win-win Cooperation. Such a second publication is unprecedented.

Other aspects of the trip also signified the deepening China-EU relationship.

President Xis visit to France coincided with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France. Xi affectionately referred to France as a “special friend，”and proposed that “both parties regard each other as priority strategic partners，” so highlighting the two countriesintimate and strategic relationship which acts as a bilateral relationship paradigm. Both parties also agreed to jointly open “a new era of a close and lasting comprehensive strategic partnership” – a formulation imbuing new significance.

During President Xis visit to Germany， both parties agreed to establish a “comprehensive strategic partnership，”so upgrading the bilateral relationship to a new level. Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Germany is willing to act as the engine of the EU-China relationship， so reflecting Germanys proactive stance on propelling EU-China relations.

In Amsterdam， China and the Netherlands vowed to establish an “open， pragmatic partnership for comprehensive cooperation.” In Brussels， China and Belgium declared the establishment of an “all-round partnership of friendship and cooperation.”

These new formulations for bilateral relations between China and EU members are unique and practical， implying closer contact. They are not merely formalist rhetoric， but rather a new positioning with substantive content， representing breakthroughs in setting equal relationships between large and small countries. They are hence of great significance.

China-EU Economic Relations Usher in New Opportunities for Closer Cooperation

China and the EU reiterated their mutual intent to strengthen mutual comprehensive economic coopera- tion and safeguard an open world economy while fighting against protectionism. Their aim is to reach an important consensus as follows： 1. Continue to negotiate and complete bilateral investment treaties； 2. Sign bilateral free-trade agreements when conditions are ripe； 3. Explore possibilities proposed by China for cooperation along the Silk Road Economic Belt； 4. Transform the China-EU Urbanization Partnership towards specific cooperation； and 5. Strengthen bilateral cooperation on finance and the RMB. The intention to cooperate involves the vital interests of both parties and， if all goes smoothly， will greatly advance China-EU comprehensive economic cooperation.

During Xis visit， the European media expressed concern about specific cooperation projects between Chinese and European companies. For example， the Dongfeng Motor Groups €800 million purchase of a 14-percent stake in PSA Peugeot Citroen made it a major shareholder， along with the French government and the Peugeot family. The deal created a new cooperative model between Chinese and European companies for joint development and collaborative investment， production， and dealings with thirdparty markets. President Xi also visited the Ghent plant of the Volvo Car Corporation in Belgium. Purchased by Chinas Geely Automobiles， the Volvo deal embodies the encouraging momentum of Chinese auto companies “going global” by cooperating more closely with European peers.

In the aviation sector， Chinese and European companies agreed on a new cooperation arrangement in the latest Airbus A320 model， exploring expanded technological cooperation to big airplanes like the Airbus A330 and Shanghai C919. This signifies China and Europes upgrading of traditional cooperation on large-scale projects to higher levels such as nuclear power. This constitutes the motivation behind President Xi Jinpings proposal to Chancellor Angela Merkel that China and Germany take on larger strategic cooperation projects on their road towards collaborative investment， research and development， and production.

Cooperation in the financial field also shows progress. China has agreed to list the Paris Financial Market as a trading venue for its Eurozone investments and where the EU invests in China. China has also agreed to allocate to France the RQFII quota of RMB 80 billion， and is negotiating establishment of an RMB clearing and settlement center in Paris. Meanwhile， China also supported the establishment of an RMB clearing mechanism in Frankfurt. In short， Xis visit created new opportunities for a comprehensive leap from quantity to quality in bilateral economic cooperation.

Promising Prospects for China-EU Cultural and Educational Cooperation

Public opinion across the world generally interpreted Xi Jinpings speeches and talks on various occasions， along with his signed articles published in different countries， as reflecting Eastern wisdom， thought and philosophy， as well as his accomplishments in history and culture. For example， Xi elaborated many times on the importance of cultural exchanges and of learning from different civilizations and peoples. In his speech delivered at the UNESCO headquarters， Xi said that civilizations are diverse yet equal， and also inclusive. According to this understanding， there are no grounds for any “clash of civilizations.” Exchange and learning among different civilizations helps different peoples understand one other while strengthening friendship， thereby protecting peace， stability and world prosperity.

From a different perspective， Xi also persuasively explained that China is taking the road of peaceful development， and exactly what the Chinese dream means. He pointed out that the road of peaceful development is not merely an expedient or diplomatic rhetoric， but a conclusion drawn from the objective judgments of history， current realities and the future. For example， Xi said， “Historically， China has been one of the most powerful countries in the world， yet it has no record of colonization or of invading other countries.” He emphasized， “China will not follow the footsteps of big powers that sought hegemony once they grew strong， but rather， it will adhere to peaceful development.”Xi also reiterated that the Chinese dream is a dream of peace， happiness and dedication in the world， and expressed hopes that Europe and the rest of the world might properly view and understand China. China and France have consequently decided to establish a highlevel people-to-people exchange mechanism， and China and the EU have agreed to implement the China-EU Year of Intercultural Dialogue. China and Germany， meanwhile， are to jointly make plans for the Year of Innovation and Cooperation. Xi also announced a plan to establish Chinese cultural centers in Brussels and the Netherlands， and the first “China Library，” at the College of Europe in Bruges， Belgium.

It is inspiring to witness the rising trend of peopleto-people exchanges between China and Europe. As of the end of last year， China had set up 115 Confucius Institutes and 147 Confucius Classrooms in the EU. Joint China-EU teaching projects in China now surpass 600， and the total number of Chinese students in EU countries and students from the EU in China reached about 300，000. Moreover， 2.38 million or more Chinese traveled to the EU， and 3.17 million people from the EU came to China. Xis visit will doubtless swell these figures in the near future.

Challenges in China-EU Relations

On the whole， China-EU relations are positive， and feature no fundamental conflict of interests. The two sides have established dialogue and negotiation mechanisms in over 60 fields. In 2013 Chinas trade with the EU hit US $559.1 billion， and there have been impressive achievements in science and technology cooperation. It is clear that the China-EU bilateral relationship is one of the worlds most influential.

However， there are no absolutes in this world. ChinaEU relations are generally positive， but differences and even frictions still persist. For example， certain problems， such as Europes arms embargo on China set 25 years ago， and the EUs restrictions on high-tech exports to China still remain unresolved. To the Chinese side these measures have always signaled political discrimination against China， which is incompatible with the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership. Moreover， that the EU refuses to recognize Chinas market-economy status， yet is willing to acknowledge that of many other countries whose marketization levels are much lower than Chinas， is unjust. The EU has also at times interfered with Chinas internal affairs and judicial sovereignty over such issues as Tibet and human rights. Such interference is clearly disadvantageous to the development of China-EU relations. China has always hoped that European countries might adopt measures as early as possible to remove such artificial barriers， in the interests of better development of China-EU relations.

President Xi Jinping hence mentioned and emphasized many times while meeting his European counterparts that nations should respect one another and properly handle issues of great concern that affect other countries core interests. He also proposed resolving any differences between China and the EU through dialogue and negotiation. In this regard， the Chinese people are happy to know that Angela Merkel， Chancellor of Germany， told President Xi Jinping that Germany understands the many challenges a populous country such as China faces， and that the German side also understands that China cannot indiscriminately adopt the same criteria as Germany or Europe. Merkels words show civility and rationally express her perspective. A proper stance on promoting mutual understanding and bilateral cooperation should be both commended and implemented through practice.

Bright Future for China-EU Relations

It has been observed that the joint statement by China and the EU issued during President Xis visit to the EU headquarters defines Xis first visit to the EU as “a historic landmark in China-EU relations.” The success of Xis visit undoubtedly presages substantially deeper China-EU relations in the future.

This prediction has several bases. First， the two sides are determined to enhance bilateral cooperation on a global level while jointly dealing with regional and global challenges and expanding the common interests of China and the EU by safeguarding world peace and stability. Second， the two sides both acknowledge their international responsibility to boost the world economy and achieve common prosperity. Both sides have also reiterated their joint commitment to developing an open world economy while fighting against protectionism. Third， the two sides agree to enhance youth culture and education exchanges. Fourth， both China and the EU are at a critical stage of reform and development. China is striving to accomplish comprehensive deepening of reforms， while the EU is working hard to realize its Europe 2020 growth strategy and European integration. What can be assured is that strengthened bilateral cooperation is in the common interests of both sides， and conducive to both achieving their development goals. At the same time， enhancing China-EU cooperation makes an important contribution towards safeguarding world peace， stability and prosperity. China and the EU aim to expand bilateral trade to US$1 trillion by 2020. They have also agreed to combine China-Europe cooperation and Silk Road Economic Belt construction， their goal to build a vast Eurasian market， thereby making China and the EU twin engines of global economic growth.

We have reason to believe that the great potential of China-EU relations will usher in a bright new era.