Visit highlights cooperative nature of relations between China and Europe: China Daily editorial

Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's official visit to China from Sunday to Wednesday comes at a time when both bilateral relations and the broader China-Europe relationship face new opportunities as well as complex challenges. Against the backdrop of global uncertainty, the visit underscores the vitality of China-Finland ties and highlights the growing inclination among European countries to pursue a more pragmatic and balanced approach toward China.

Finland was one of the earliest Western countries to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. Over the past seven decades, the two countries have upheld mutual respect, equality and noninterference, forging a relationship that has transcended differences in social systems and ideologies and withstood shifts in the international landscape. In recent years, under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, the China-Finland future-oriented new-type cooperative partnership has continued to deepen, injecting fresh momentum into bilateral cooperation across a wide range of fields.

China attaches great importance to the development of China-Finland relations and stands ready to work with Finland to further enhance high-level exchanges, strengthen political mutual trust, expand economic and trade cooperation, promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and deepen coordination on multilateral affairs. Orpo's visit, in which he is due to have meetings with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and top legislator Zhao Leji, reflects both sides' shared commitment to maintaining dialogue and advancing practical cooperation.

Economic and trade cooperation has long served as a cornerstone of China-Finland relations and continues to demonstrate strong resilience and growth potential. China is one of Finland's major trading partners, with bilateral cooperation focused on areas vital to the green transition, including the low-carbon economy, circular economy and climate change mitigation. The presence of a sizable Finnish business delegation accompanying Orpo speaks volumes about the cooperative nature of the relations and the confidence of Finnish enterprises in the Chinese market. With hundreds of Finnish company subsidiaries operating in China and bilateral trade and investment reaching substantial levels, deeper cooperation will bring tangible benefits to both economies and peoples.

At the same time, Orpo's visit carries broader significance in the context of evolving China-Europe relations. In recent years, the United States has increasingly resorted to unilateralism, placing its own interests above other countries and exerting pressure on Europe in areas ranging from trade to geopolitics. Against this backdrop, the visits to China by Orpo and other European leaders and senior officials, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Taoiseach of Ireland Micheal Martin and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, signal a growing recognition within Europe of the importance of maintaining engagement with China through dialogue and eschewing the confrontational approach urged upon them by the US.

Recent developments further illustrate this pragmatic undercurrent. The agreement reached this month between China and the European Union to resolve disputes over electric vehicles through consultations, allowing Chinese manufacturers to avoid punitive tariffs imposed in 2024, demonstrates the EU's willingness to address differences through dialogue and negotiation. Such outcomes reaffirm that cooperation, not decoupling, best serves the interests of both sides.

However, inconsistencies remain within the EU's China policy. Some EU politicians continue to flirt with so-called "de-risking" measures, as seen in recent moves to screen or restrict Chinese companies in certain sectors under the pretext of "security". These contradictory signals reflect hesitation and external pressure rather than a truly independent and rational assessment of China-EU economic relations.

The reality is that China and Europe share extensive common interests and face shared global challenges. China has consistently upheld high-standard opening-up and remains committed to mutually beneficial cooperation with Europe. As repeatedly emphasized by Chinese officials, openness brings progress, while isolation leads only to stagnation. The EU, for its part, should further reassess its China policy with a long-term, strategic perspective, resisting external interference.

Orpo's visit thus offers not only an opportunity to strengthen China-Finland relations, but also a chance to prompt other European countries to objectively view China's development and manage differences through dialogue, so as to steady ties in an increasingly volatile world. By choosing engagement over estrangement, both sides can help ensure that cooperation remains the defining feature of China-Europe relations in the years ahead.