Onus on EU to promote ties with China

Bloc should see that mutual trust, understanding and compromise are essential to our strategic partnership

In the run-up to the G20 summit in the eastern city of Hangzhou in September, Chinese and European leaders will hold intensive talks to create more opportunities and space to boost trade and relations.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is making her ninth visit to China, with the aim to take Sino-German relations to new heights. But despite China's advanced manufacturing power, which helped Germany to reap benefits by investing in the country for decades, Berlin is still hesitant to acknowledge China as a market economy.

As for the overall relationship between China and the European Union, the two sides have decided to hold their annual summit in July. The decision was taken at a high-level strategic dialogue in Brussels on June 10 co-chaired by State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Federica Mogherini, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy. In addition, EU leaders including European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will meet with their Chinese counterparts at the Asia-Europe meeting in Mongolia in July and the G20 summit in September.

As well as these meetings, the leaders of Britain and France are also expected to meet with Chinese officials at bilateral and multilateral forums and meetings in the coming months.

It is notable that such meetings are being held so frequently despite the serious domestic challenges China and Europe face, and the rising concerns over regional and global issues.

It is encouraging to see Chinese and European leaders adopting a pragmatic approach, even though they have taken different stands on the serious issues of excess steel production and China's market economy status.

In 2012 and 2013, Beijing and Brussels were locked in a dispute over exports of Chinese-made solar panels to EU countries, after which high-level exchanges between the two sides were closed for almost a year. The resumption of the exchanges can thus be seen as a win-win compromise.

Some observers say the consultation approach adopted by the two sides should be used to resolve the steel trade dispute and determine how China can acquire market economy status.

For the EU and many of its member states, China has been their strategic partner. The essential elements of such a partnership are mutual trust, understanding and compromise. China has established such a relationship with the EU, which received a boost when Xi Jinping became the first Chinese president to visit the EU headquarters in 2014, to help restore global peace and accelerate growth and reform.

China has offered to synergize Beijing-Brussels work on megaprojects by setting up joint funds to realize connectivity and inject more capital into the EU's 315 billion euro ($354 billion) investment plan.

These commitments follow China's support for the EU during its deepest financial and sovereign debt crisis in 2008 and 2009. Some EU members including Britain, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Greece have responded positively to China's moves. But others, especially the EU itself, have a lot of homework to do on how to further expand the strategic partnership.

The EU needs to meet the expectations of its member states, most of which are eager to deepen pragmatic relations with China. The EU should also expedite the decision-making process to realize megaproject synergy and facilitate connectivity in Eurasia.

Moreover, the EU should consider internal institutional reforms - turning its institutions into facilitators of pragmatic partnership, instead of working as stumbling blocks.

The author is deputy chief of China Daily European Bureau. Contact the writer at fujing@chinadaily.com.cn