Mogherini discusses scope for wider EU-China cooperation with State Councillor Yang

Close cooperation between the European Union and China is crucial to meet the regional and global challenges the world currently faces, High Representative Federica Mogherini i said today, as she met Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi for the annual Strategic Dialogue.

Just a few weeks before the EU-China summit in Beijing in July, and coming in the wake of the celebration of 40 years of diplomatic relations, the meeting looked at the potential for greater cooperation in the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa, and on migration, regional security in Asia and counter-terrorism. The two also looked at relations with Russia, the situation in Ukraine, trade, investment and connectivity. Mogherini also underlined that “the rule of law and human rights are at the very centre of our bilateral relations”.

“The European Union and China are both individually very important global actors and share the interest of having stability in our respective regions and some important fields of common engagement on the global level,” Mogherini told a joint press event with State Councillor Yang. “So today we took the opportunity to prepare the summit and to exchange views on a very wide range of issues.”

“We will continue working together in the spirit of mutual cooperation and respect, facing growing challenges at the regional and global levels. We understand very well that working closely together is crucial for the prosperity and security of our people,” she added.

In particular they discussed "increased cooperation between the EU and China in the Middle East, which is essential for the security and stability of the world - and not only of the region." The High Representative said: "Our close cooperation on the Iranian nuclear deal in this area has set a positive example to do more together in this area. So we discussed the scope of our cooperation on Syria, Iraq, Libya and the Middle East Peace Process.”

Mogherini invited China to attend the Brussels conference on Afghanistan in October and said the EU hoped to intensify counter-terrorism work through the existing bilateral political and security dialogue.

She backed China’s current presidency of the G20: “China is a key partner in both delivering climate actions and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals and, as a P5, it can play a crucial role in the Security Council.”