World
Leaders reach consensus on advancing ties, safeguarding multilateralism, and jointly addressing global challenges
  ·  2020-09-22  ·   Source: NO.39 SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Chinese President Xi Jinping co-hosts a China-Germany-EU leaders' meeting in Beijing on September 14 via video link with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (XINHUA)

Chinese President Xi Jinping held discussions with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen via video link on September 14. They reached consensus on advancing ties, safeguarding multilateralism, and jointly addressing global challenges. An edited excerpt from a Xinhua News Agency report follows:

Leaders of China, Germany and the EU on September 14 agreed to strengthen communication and cooperation to ensure the success of the upcoming series of major political agenda between China and the EU, enhance mutual trust, seek mutual benefits on a win-win basis and uphold multilateralism.

The leaders announced the official signing of the China-EU agreement on geographical indications (GIs) and stated their commitment to speeding up negotiations on the China-EU Bilateral Investment Treaty to conclude the negotiations within this year. They decided to establish a China-EU high-level environment and climate dialogue and a China-EU high-level digital cooperation dialogue, and to forge China-EU green and digital partnerships.

Xi said the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is accelerating changes unseen in a century, and mankind is standing at a new crossroads faced with multiple common challenges. It is more imperative for China and the EU, as two major forces, markets and civilizations, to firmly grasp the general trend of mutual support and united cooperation in face of such situations, promote sound and stable development of the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership, and inject more positive energy into COVID-19 response efforts, economic recovery and championing justice.

Principles for boosting ties

Xi proposed four principles for developing the China-EU relationship.

First, China and the EU should adhere to peaceful coexistence. As there are no identical political systems in the world, the coexistence of multiple civilizations represents normalcy. "The firmer the strength underpinning China-EU peaceful coexistence, the more guaranteed world peace and prosperity," Xi said.

Second, China and the EU should adhere to openness and cooperation. China is working to foster a new, dual-cycle development architecture with the domestic cycle as the mainstay and with domestic and international development reinforcing each other. "China will seek better interconnectivity and effectiveness between the two markets and resources on the two sides to promote common development in a more robust and sustainable way," Xi said.

Third, China and the EU should adhere to multilateralism. Xi stressed China is ready to work with the EU to step up dialogue and coordination at bilateral, regional and global levels, stay committed to a global governance outlook featuring consultation, contribution and shared benefits, defend the international order and system with the United Nations at the core, and promote political settlements of international and regional hotspot issues.

Fourth, China and the EU should adhere to dialogue and consultation. "China and the EU need to stay committed to the mainstream of cooperation, resolve misunderstanding through dialogue, overcome difficulties through development and properly manage differences."

Macro-policy coordination

Since China and the EU are important trade and investment partners, Xi said the they should step up macro-policy coordination and unleash more cooperation opportunities.

Remarking that the agreement on protecting GIs was officially signed on September 14, Xi said the two sides should adopt a positive and pragmatic attitude, work to upgrade cooperation, facilitate the post-pandemic world economic recovery and jointly safeguard an open trade and investment environment.

"The Chinese market remains open to the EU. More high-quality and safe EU agricultural products are welcome to enter China," Xi said.

"The two sides should forge China-EU green partnerships," he added, also saying that the two sides need to participate constructively in the global multilateral process of tackling climate change and protecting global biodiversity. They should support each other in running the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow next year and promoting the 15th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Kunming to achieve positive results.

The two sides need to forge China-EU digital partnerships, Xi said, adding that China has put forward its global initiative on data security, and hopes that the EU will work with China to formulate standards and rules for the global digital field and promote the sound development of global governance in digital economy.

Xi said the two sides should address each other's legitimate concerns, adding that China follows closely the recent developments of the EU in 5G, foreign investment review, government procurement and competition policy.

Xi expressed the hope that the EU will keep its trade and investment market open, foster an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment and protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China and the EU have maintained close contacts in anti-pandemic and global health cooperation, demonstrating the significance and global impact of China-EU relations, Xi said.

For the next step, the two sides should strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination and cooperation, maintain the stability of the global industrial chain and supply chain, and jointly promote the recovery of the world economy, Xi said.

Xi called for strengthening vaccine research and development cooperation, to strive for making vaccines universally available global public goods, and fully accommodate the availability and affordability of the vaccines in developing countries.

Personnel exchanges must be resumed in an orderly manner, and the cross-border movement of goods should be facilitated, he said.

He also urged tripartite cooperation with Africa on the basis of full respect for African countries' will, calling on the international community, especially multilateral financial institutions and commercial creditors, to take stronger action on debt relief in Africa.

Clarifying China's principled position on Hong Kong-related and Xinjiang-related issues, he said that the essence of the issues is to safeguard China's national sovereignty, security and unity, and to protect the rights of people of all ethnic groups to live and work in peace.

"China firmly opposes any person or force creating instability, division and chaos in China, and meddling in China's internal affairs by any country," he stressed.

"There is no one-size-fits-all path to human rights development in the world. There is no best way, only the better one," Xi stressed, adding that countries should handle their own issues first.

Chinese people will not accept "an instructor" on human rights and oppose "double standard." China is willing to strengthen exchanges with the European side based on the principle of mutual respect so that the two sides can both make progress, Xi said.

Strategic partnership

Merkel, Michel and von der Leyen said China is an important strategic partner respected by the EU. It is imperative for Europe and China to strengthen cooperation, jointly safeguard multilateralism, resist unilateralism and protectionism, and respond more effectively to various global challenges. This is in line with the common interests of both Europe and China and the international community.

The EU is willing to work with China to strengthen dialogue, promote mutual trust, and push cooperation in economy and trade, investment, green economy, climate change, biodiversity and sustainable development for more achievements.

The European side was encouraged by the signing of the agreement on GIs and welcomed China relaxing market access restrictions, expanding opening up, and pledging to conclude the EU-China investment agreement negotiations within this year.

The European side is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in international organizations, promote anti-pandemic international cooperation, maintain free trade, and promote the economic recovery in Europe, China as well as the rest of the world at an early date.

On the human rights issue, the European side admitted its problems and expressed the hope to conduct dialogue with China based on the principles of equality and mutual respect to enhance mutual understanding and handle their differences properly.

The leaders also exchanged views on international and regional issues including Afghanistan and the Iranian nuclear issue. They agreed to strengthen communication and coordination and to make joint efforts in maintaining international and regional security and stability.

(Print Edition Title: Defining China-EU Political Agenda)

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