Friends,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning! Today, I am very delighted to get together with both old and new friends at the 12th China-Europe Forum. Since its inception in 2011, the China-Europe Forum has provided a valuable platform and played a positive role in advancing dialogue, mutual understanding and cooperation among insightful minds from all sectors. This year’s forum, themed on the 50th anniversary of China-EU diplomatic relations, is highly relevant as it allows us to reflect on the past progress and more importantly look forward to the future. On behalf of the Chinese Mission to the European Union, let me first congratulate on this year’s forum and warmly welcome all distinguished guests being here today. I also wish to express my sincere gratitude to Friends of Europe, the China Public Diplomacy Association and all those who have long supported and contributed to China-EU relations.

In 1975, the older generations of Chinese and European leaders showed extraordinary political foresight and courage, breaking down the barriers of Cold War to decide to establish diplomatic ties. Over the past half-century, China-EU relations have weathered international changes, maintaining a momentum of steady growth and becoming increasingly strategic and globally significant.

The past 50 years has witnessed the continuous elevation of China-EU relations. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, the relationship has reached new heights through joint efforts. In 2001, we established a comprehensive partnership, which was upgraded to the comprehensive strategic partnership in 2003.In 2014, President Xi Jinping made a historic visit to the EU headquarters, during which he called for joint efforts to build four bridges for peace, growth, reform and progress of civilization, so that the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership will take on even greater global significance. The China-EU Summit, since 1998, has taken place 24 times. This leadership exchange is also complemented by high-level dialogues in strategic, economic, digital, environmental, and people-to-people fields, as well as over 70 consultation and dialogue mechanisms. The fact that this year President Xi Jinping visited three European countries and leaders from 10 European nations visited China fully reflects the strong momentum and broad prospects of China-EU relations.

The past 50 years has witnessed the flourishing of practical cooperation. China and the EU are now each other’s major trading partners and investment destinations. According to Chinese statistics, the bilateral trade volume reached $783 billion in 2023, with cumulative mutual investments exceeding $250 billion. The China-Europe freight train service operated 100,000 trips. Our cooperation on geographical indications realized mutual recognition and mutual protection of 100 GI products on each side, and we successfully completed the public announcement of the second round of 175 GI products on each side. The two sides also achieved fruitful cooperation in the fields of finance, finance, environmental protection, transportation, science and technology, education, customs, health and justice, and made steady progress in cooperation in emerging sectors such as digital economy, new energy and artificial intelligence. We also organized events like the China-EU Cultural Year and Tourism Year. Recently, China unilaterally offered visa-free access to nearly 20 EU countries, a move that will further facilitate people-to-people exchanges.

The past 50 years has witnessed the joint contributions to global peace and development. China and the EU are two major forces advancing multipolarity, two large markets supporting globalization, and two great civilizations advocating for diversity. A robust China-EU relationship benefits not only our two peoples but also global peace, stability and prosperity. As advocates of multilateralism, we work closely at the UN, G20 and other platforms, and maintain communication on major international and regional issues including the Ukraine crisis, the Palestine-Israel conflict and the Iran nuclear issue. We both support the WTO’s central role in the multilateral trading system and stay committed to advancing WTO reform. By promoting the conclusion and implementation of the Paris Agreement, we are taking concrete actions to address climate change and other global challenges to safeguard our shared planet.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends,

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and the country has embarked on a new journey of building a great country and advancing national rejuvenation on all fronts through Chinese modernization. China’s development and growth will bring more opportunities to Europe and the world at large.

First, China’s further reform and opening up will bring opportunities. This July, the Chinese Communist Party held the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, making systematic plans for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernization. The meeting outlined over 300 significant reform measures to be implemented within the next five years. These include fully removing foreign investment restrictions in manufacturing, further opening sectors like biotechnology, cloud computing, value-added telecommunications and wholly foreign-owned hospitals, and steadily expanding institutional openness. China’s door of opening up will only open wider.

Second, China’s high-quality development will bring opportunities. China’s economy boasts broad markets, strong resilience, immense potential, and a comprehensive industrial system. China is advancing high-quality development and accelerating the growth of new productive forces. In the first half of this year, investment in high-tech manufacturing and high-tech service industries both grew by double digits. The country’s economic structure and growth model continue to be optimized. Over the years, China has contributed more than 30% of global economic growth and remains a key trading partner for over 140 countries and regions. With the recent policy measures, Chinese economy will continue to move upward, and we have full confidence in achieving this year’s economic growth target. China will continue to serve as a major engine of global growth.

Third, China’s peaceful development will bring opportunities. In pursuit of Chinese modernization, China neither follows the old path of colonial exploitation nor pursues a hegemonic path of power dominance. Instead, we keep to a just cause of peaceful development. China adheres to an independent foreign policy of peace, advocating for an equitable and orderly multipolar world and inclusive, mutually beneficial economic globalization. We are committed to working with all nations to implement the Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative, and Global Civilization Initiative, as well as advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. The aim is to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends,

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of China-EU diplomatic relations. Despite some of the challenges, this relationship faces significant opportunities. At this crucial moment, it is important that we work together to seize opportunities, address challenges, and promote the healthy and stable development of China-EU relations. To this end, I would like to share my views on three aspects.

First, China and the EU should be partners, not rivals. There are no fundamental conflicts of interest between the two sides. In fact, we have more areas of consensus and cooperation than differences and competition. We are partners rather than rivals. China always views relations with the EU from a strategic and long-term perspective, regarding Europe as an important direction in China’s diplomacy and an important partner in pursuit of Chinese modernization. Similarly, we hope that the EU side can take an objective and rational view of China’s development and think about the future direction of China-EU relations. We believe that differences in social system, ideology, history, culture and level of development should serve as a driving force for dialogue and cooperation, not as reasons or excuses for rivalry and confrontation. As partners, we should respect each other’s core interests and major concerns, a valuable lesson we learned from the 50-yearrelationship. China hopes to work with the EU to reaffirm partnership and make good preparations for the next China-EU Summit on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties. We hope to deepen strategic communication and build mutual trust to ensure the steady and sustained growth of China-EU relations.

Second, China and the EU should strengthen practical cooperation, not seek decoupling. The essence of our practical cooperation in trade and other fields lies in complementary advantages and mutual benefit. The past 50 years has shown that we are deeply intertwined and have a stake in each other’s success. We hope to consolidate and expand practical cooperation in various fields and turn each other into key partners for business cooperation, priority partners for cooperation in science and technology, and trustworthy partners for cooperation in industrial and supply chains. At the same time, China opposes the politicization and securitization of trade issues and stand against protectionism. We hope to work with the EU in the same direction and implement the consensus reached by our leaders to resolve trade frictions through dialogue and consultation. Issues such as the ongoing electric vehicle case should be properly handled to preserve the broader framework of China-EU trade cooperation. People-to-people exchanges hold the key to sound state-to-state relations. We welcome more European friends to visit China for sightseeing and making investments. We also hope the EU provide greater convenience for Chinese citizens coming to Europe.

Third, China and the EU should add more stability and certainty to the world, not complexity. The world is undergoing a new period of turbulence and transformation. China supports European integration and strategic autonomy as well as a greater role for the EU in international affairs. Both China and the EU support multipolarity, uphold international laws and basic norms of international relations, and oppose a “new Cold War” and bloc confrontation. As we approach the 80th anniversary of the UN next year, China is ready to work with the EU and the wider global community to uphold the UN-centered international system and promote a just and equitable international order. As two global players, China and the EU share the responsibility to add greater stability and certainty to this turbulent and changing world, to drive global progress in development, and provide more leadership and support for global governance. Together, we should continue to make new contributions to global peace and development.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends,

Chinese people often say that at fifty, one knows the mandate of heaven. We also believe that where there’s a will, there’s a way. As we approach the 50th anniversary of China-EU diplomatic ties, I very much look forward to hearing your insights and suggestions. Let us work together to usher in a brighter future for China-EU relations.

Finally, I wish this year’s China-Europe Forum a great success.

Thank you!