As China-EU summit ends, Premier Li Keqiang vows reforms: ‘When we say it, we have got to do it’
- China and the European Union try to smooth over differences at annual meeting amid increased trade tensions
- The two sides draft a joint statement, despite earlier suggestions EU leaders might walk away from talks
At the end of its annual summit meeting with the European Union on Tuesday, China vowed to boost trade ties with the EU by providing a “level playing field” for their businesses, while Chinese Premier Li Keqiang flatly denied claims that Beijing was behind any sort of industrial espionage that had raised the concerns of EU member nations.
In a diplomatic win for China, EU leaders departed from recent confrontational statements and did not make any references to China as a “systemic rival”, or call its trade practices “unfair”.
For the EU, China’s agreement to broaden market access, oppose forced technology transfer and cooperate on World Trade Organisation reform regarding industrial subsidies was regarded as progress.
At the meeting in Brussels, China and the EU also agreed to forge synergies between China's “Belt and Road Initiative” and the EU’s own Connecting Europe and Asia programme, which hopes to increase connectivity between Europe and Asia, as well as its planned Trans-European Transport Networks set of road, rail, air and water systems.
The two sides managed to draft a joint statement, despite earlier suggestions that EU leaders might walk away from negotiations amid a tougher European stance on China’s business practices.