Chinese President Xi Jinping considers the EU a "key partner" in trade and economic cooperation
Chinese President Xi Jinping considers the EU a "key partner" in trade and economic cooperation
Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed that he sees the European Union (EU) as a "key partner" in trade and economic cooperation in the process of development and openness.
According to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Xi Jinping met with European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who are on a visit to his country to attend the China-EU summit in Beijing.
During the meeting, Xi Jinping noted that the economies of China and the EU are "highly complementary" and that the development of cooperation will strengthen common interests, and said: "China, which strives for high-quality development and high standards of openness, considers the EU as a key partner in economic and trade cooperation, a preferred partner in scientific-technical cooperation and a reliable partner in industrial and supply chain cooperation."
Stressing that China and the EU are two powers that can develop multipolarity, Xi Jinping said: "We should not consider each other as competitors just because our systems are different. We should not reduce cooperation just because we are competing. We should not engage in confrontation with each other because we have disagreements," he said.
According to Xi Jinping, China and the EU should support each other in terms of market, capital and technology, renew traditional industries, promote the development of new industries, jointly develop industry and supply chains, creating new models of cooperation and new areas of growth.
The EU seeks to develop stable relations with China
Michel and von der Leyen also stressed during the meeting that "the EU wants to develop stable, predictable and sustainable relations with China."
Expressing that the EU hopes to develop cooperation in trade, green development and the digital economy, as well as to protect supply chains, European leaders expressed a desire to cooperate on global issues such as climate change and artificial intelligence.
In a message posted on her social media account X, von der Leyen said that "China and the EU agree on a common interest in a balanced trade relationship."
The next annual summit meeting between China and the 27 countries of the European Union (EU) will be held in Beijing today and tomorrow. The summit will be the first face-to-face meeting since 2019.
At the summit, the parties are expected to discuss the imbalance in bilateral trade in favor of the EU, as well as geopolitical issues related to the Russian-Ukrainian war.