On April 9, 2021, the Dialogue on China-Europe Relations was jointly held by the China Forum under the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and The European House – Ambrosetti. H.E. WU Hongbo, former UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative of the Chinese Government on European Affairs, and H.E. Romano Prodi, former President of the European Commission and former Prime Minister of Italy, were invited to deliver keynote speeches on the current China-Europe relations. The event, moderated by Mr. Valerio De Molli, CEO of Ambrosetti, welcomed an audience of close to 100 participants including Mr. ZHANG Lirong, Secretary General of the China Forum, Ms. HAN Hua, Member of the Executive Committee of the China Forum, Mr. Mattia Marino, CEO of Ambrosetti (Beijing) Consulting Ltd, and China Forum experts and business representatives as well as representatives from Ambrosetti member corporates.

In his remarks, Mr. Prodi acknowledged China’s achievements in fighting COVID-19 and its remarkable economic recovery from the pandemic, but also noted the growing challenge for the EU to maintain its strategic relationships with China and the US amidst unprecedented tensions between the two powers. The multilateral global landscape is evolving toward regional bilateralism, a trend also seen in production and supply chains.

Mr. Prodi recognized both successes and challenges in Europe-China relations. After more than 30 rounds of prolonged talks stretching over seven years, the EU and China finally concluded the negotiations for the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) last year, from which Mr. Prodi hoped would yield encouraging outcomes. The EU would like to see greater openness from China, he suggested, calling for stronger collaboration in climate change, green energy and third-party market development between the two sides. On top of that, China, the EU and the US could improve their relations through trilateral cooperation.

H.E. Wu Hongbo said in his address that Year 2020 was unprecedented—marked by both the pandemic and milestones in China-EU relations: China became the EU’s top trading partner; the China-EU Agreement on Geographical Indications entered into force; the two sides agreed to set up high-level dialogue mechanisms on digital development and on environment and climate; and the CAI negotiations were completed on schedule.

Despite ideological differences between China and Europe, consensus and agreement are possible if there is mutual respect for each other’s core interests and concerns, stressed Ambassador Wu, who expressed optimism about the future of China-EU relations and agreed that energy and climate could serve as a new basis for cooperation.

He noted that China has and will always engage with the EU based on the principles of peaceful coexistence, openness and cooperation, multilateralism, and commitment to dialogue, and that it seeks better strategic coordination with the EU through increased dialogue and cooperation. The CAI, once implemented, will bring benefits to both sides; but the reciprocity of harm would also apply if the agreement failed to materialize.

Together, China’s rapid infrastructure development and application of emerging technologies are ready to enable even more robust growth, said Ambassador Wu. Foreign investors and businesses will enjoy greater opportunities in China’s ever-growing market as it continues to open up.

Touching on China-US relations, Ambassador Wu pointed out that misinformation and unsubstantiated allegations should not be the basis for judgement-making. China is being mistreated for a confrontation it did not start.

The two keynote speakers took questions afterward on investment environment in the EU, prospects for the CAI review, overseas business operations, etc.

(Courtesy of The European House – Ambrosetti)