European expert urges better EU-China relations

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-05-18 14:34

BRUSSELS -- It is in the interests of both the European Union (EU) and China to continue to improve bilateral relations amid the current economic difficulties and the resumption of the EU-China Summit is important for boosting bilateral ties, a European expert on Chinese affairs has said.

"Obviously, it highlights that relations between the EU and China are normalized, but this process has already been going on since the successful visit of Premier Wen Jiabao in January," Jonathan Holslag, head of research at the Brussels Institute of Contemporary China Studies and an expert with the EU-China Academic Network, told Xinhua recently.

"This rapid restoration confirms the strong interdependence between both sides and that cooperation is inevitable, especially in times of economic uncertainty," said Holslag, who has closely followed the changes and developments in China as well as the EU-China relations.

After being suspended at the end of last year, the EU-China Summit is scheduled to be resumed on May 20 in Prague, the Czech Republic, which is holding the EU presidency.

Speaking of the possible outcome of the summit, Holslag said it would be an "intermediary" summit. "What will be very important for this meeting is that China and Europe agree on how they will continue their negotiations on a new framework agreement," the expert said.

He added that the two sides have made remarkable progress in defining political priorities, but at the economic level, not much progress has been achieved.

"While Europe and China recognize the need for strengthening ties, they remain at odds over how this should be done," Holslag explained.

"China wants only a step-by-step approach in opening up new sectors like services and government procurement, while Europe on the contrary wants a package deal right away."

He believed that the challenge at the meeting in Prague "is to agree on a realistic roadmap for future negotiations."

"The EU-China partnership has always been very promising on paper, but a little disappointing in practice," Holslag said.

"There is a massive architecture of exchanges and dialogues, but the results are modest," he said, adding that the EU-China cooperation is hardly visible at the global level.

"It is often said that the EU and China do not have many common strategic interests because of the geographic distance, but in reality we have become neighbors," Holslag said.

He added that a mature partnership "demands that we overcome our different diplomatic values and look at the many interests that bind us."

"The future of our economic relations will depend on the extent that we succeed in reforming ourselves," Holslag said.

Beijing has considered the economic crisis an opportunity to promote domestic consumption and innovation, while the EU has showed a rather conservative attitude, Holslag noted.

"A lot of political courage will be needed to lift our economies up to a higher level, but we can only continue to improve the EU-China partnership if Europe and China continue to improve themselves," he added.