China, Europe: together to build a better future

By Yi Fan

Last February a new fleet of King Long Chinese vehicles arrived in Cyprus, and have since become part of the island’s public bus service. The environmentally-friendly buses not only meet the Euro6 standard but also have an automated cleaning process, air conditioning, Wi-Fi, USB charging points and mobile apps for real-time information. Like the previous batch, the new buses are expected to provide a “first-class travel” experience, as one Cypriot student put it.

Strategically located at the crossroads of Asia, Europe and Africa and as an EU member and a strong shipping hub, Cyprus also has huge potential to deepen cooperation with China in ports, sea transportation and infrastructure to further drive the local economy. Enormous opportunities lie ahead as the Belt and Road Initiative celebrates its tenth anniversary.

The mutually-beneficial cooperation between China and Cyprus is an example of how much can be achieved if the potential of China-EU cooperation is further unleashed. On China’s part, its EU policy is stable and consistent, always welcoming stronger communication and cooperation with the world’s largest trading bloc.

As it reopens after the Covid-19 pandemic, Beijing has rolled out red carpets for a stream of visiting VIPs from Europe in recent months, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, President of the European Council Charles Michel, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón and, most recently, French President Emmanuel Macron, along with Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission.

Chinese and European leaders maintained close contact through video meetings and phone calls during the pandemic. Now, with the pandemic subsiding, there is a great urgency for face-to-face interactions. So, in their talks, one of the first things that leaders from both sides agreed on is to fully resume in-person exchanges in all fields and at all levels.

Not least in the business sector. At the China Development Forum and Boao Forum for Asia annual conference that China held last month, there was an impressive turnout of European business leaders. Having seen with their own eyes China’s vigour and vitality beyond the pandemic, they expressed optimism about the growth potential of the world’s second-largest economy. The desire to further explore opportunities of China-EU cooperation is palpable.

China and the EU are now each other’s second-largest trading partner. Two-way trade maintained steady growth despite the pandemic, and now exceeds €2 billion on a daily basis. After the China-EU geographical indications agreement entered into force on March 1, 2021, the two sides have achieved mutual recognition and protection of 244 products, with the publishing of a second batch of 350 mutually-recognised products also completed. This is a concrete example of win-win cooperation.

Indeed, with the strong recovery of the Chinese economy, more cooperation opportunities abound. China’s middle income population already exceeds 400 million, and is expected to double in the next 15 years. The demand for high-quality products and services is simply humongous. During President Macron’s visit, China and France reached an agreement called “from French farm to Chinese table”. One can confidently expect to see more of Cyprus’ distinctive agricultural products like halloumi on Chinese dining tables.

Overall, China and the EU are highly complementary in terms of markets, capital and technology. There is also huge potential for cooperation in emerging fields such as the digital economy, new energy and artificial intelligence.

It is also in the interests of the world that China and the EU work together. Both sides are committed to seeking multilateral solutions to global problems and have carried out fruitful cooperation in climate response, biodiversity, the Iranian nuclear issue, and many other areas. As the international landscape gets more turbulent and challenges even greater, there is an urgent need for Beijing and Brussels to work more closely in a wide range of areas and bring more certainty to an uncertain world.

Undoubtedly, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine is high on the minds of European leaders visiting China, who expect their Chinese interlocutors to play a bigger mediating role. China has made clear its position many times, facilitating talks for peace, and the most urgent thing now is to stop the fighting to save lives. At the same time, there needs to be a long-term solution to the problem, where the security concerns of all parties must be addressed.

Importantly, there is one common denominator that binds China and the EU together: peace. As President von der Leyen and President Macron said to President Xi Jinping, they are prepared to work with China to find a way to facilitate talks for peace. China also supports the EU in building a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework, which serves the EU’s fundamental and long-term interests.

China and Cyprus enjoy more than five decades of fruitful cooperation. The China-EU relationship is also celebrating its 20th anniversary of comprehensive strategic partnership this year. Given the myriad challenges facing humanity, it is imperative that China and the EU step up and together bring more peace, stability and certainty to our world.

The author is a Beijing-based observer of international affairs