The sixth China-EU leaders' meeting was held in Beijing
Thursday, and leaders from the two sides vowed to boost the
cooperation between China and the European Union (EU).
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
of Italy, in his capacity as President of the European Council,
President of the European Commission Romano Prodi and High
Representative for the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier
Solana attended the summit.
Wen said developing the China-EU relations is in the fundamental
interest of both sides and would bring about mutual benefit.
China-EU relations should be developed from the long-term
strategic perspective, Wen said.
The premier said that the EU has issued five strategic papers on
its policy towards China and the Chinese side has recently issued
its first EU policy paper.
He said the bilateral trade volume has grown sharply and that
during the first three quarters of this year hit 89.06 billion US
dollars, up 41.5 percent over the same period of last year and
surpassing the figure of the whole year in 2002.
As for the EU itself, the premier said it is a vital political
force and economy across the world and it has played an important
role in the international arena.
China has always supported the integration process of the EU and
wished it to be strong and prosperous, he said, noting that China
is willing to enhance cooperation in various fields.
The premier thus put forward a four-point proposal: to keep
frequent exchanges of high-level visits; to deepen trade and
economic cooperation; to set up an effective cooperation mechanism;
and to eliminate barriers hindering the healthy growth of the
China-EU relations.
Berlusconi spoke highly of China's contribution to world
stability and the EU-China cooperation.
He reiterated that the member states of the EU adhere to the one
China policy and they would continue to conduct comprehensive
cooperation with China.
Prodi said the EU is willing to strengthen the political
dialogue with China and take full advantages of mutual
complementarity in various fields like economy, science, culture
and education, so as to create a new situation for bilateral
cooperation.
Solana said as vital forces in the international arena, both the EU
and China face the same challenges, and enhancing cooperation
benefits both sides.
After the meeting, the two sides signed three agreements and
cooperation documents, including an agreement on Galileo satellite
navigation cooperation and a memorandum of understanding on the EU
becoming an approved tourist destination.
(Xinhua News Agency October 31, 2003)