President Juncker at the 20th EU-China Summit
Deepening the strategic global partnership
President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker i and President of the European Council Donald Tusk i represented the European Union at the 20th EU-China Summit which took place today in Beijing, China.
The People's Republic of China was represented by Premier Li Keqiang. European Commission Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness, Jyrki Katainen i, Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström i, and Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc i also attended the Summit. President Tusk and President Juncker also met with the President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jinping.
"I have always been a strong believer in the potential of the EU-China partnership. And in today's world that partnership is more important than ever before. Our cooperation simply makes sense", said the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker at the press conference following the Summit. "Europe is China's largest trading partner and China is our second largest. The trade in goods between us is worth over €1.5 billion every single day. But we also know that we can do so much more. This is why it is so important that today we have made progress on the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment through a first exchange of offers on market access, and towards an agreement on Geographical Indications. That shows that we want to create more opportunities for people in China and in Europe."
In their Joint Summit Statement, the EU and China confirmed their firm support to the rules-based, transparent, non-discriminatory, open and inclusive multilateral trading system with the WTO as its core and committed to complying with existing WTO rules. They also committed to co-operating on the reform of the WTO to help it meet new challenges, and established a joint working group on WTO reform, chaired at Vice-Ministerial level.
This 20th Summit demonstrates the many ways in which the European Union and China are concretely strengthening what is already a comprehensive relationship. In addition to the Joint Statement, a number of other concrete deliverables were agreed, including:
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-an exchange of offers on the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment;
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-agreement to conclude before the end of October, if possible, the negotiations on an Agreement on Geographical Indications;
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-a Memorandum of Understanding between the European Investment Fund and the Silk Road Forumconfirming the first co-investment carried out under the recently established China-EU Co-Investment Fund;
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-a Strategic Administrative Cooperation Arrangement and an Action Plan (2018-2020) between the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the General Administration of China Customs
In the joint Leaders' statement and an annex on climate change and clean energy, the European Union and China have committed to step up their cooperation towards low greenhouse gas emission economies and the implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. In doing so, the EU and China will intensify their political, technical, economic and scientific cooperation on climate change and clean energy.
Building on the success of the 2017 EU-China Blue Year, the EU and China have also signed a Partnership Agreement on Oceans. Two of the world’s largest ocean economies will work together to improve the international governance of the oceans, including by combating illegal fishing and exploring potential business and research opportunities, based on clean technologies, in the maritime economy. The partnership contains clear commitments to protect the marine environment against pollution, including plastic litter; tackle climate change in accordance with the Paris Agreement and implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in particular Goal 14. The signature of this ocean partnership is the first of its kind and opens the door for future partnerships between the EU and other key ocean players.
Leaders discussed foreign and security cooperation and the situation in their respective neighbourhoods, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula; implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - the Iran nuclear deal; joint, peace in Afghanistan; and the situation in eastern Ukraine and the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol, among others.
In the margins of the Summit, President Juncker also participated in the EU-China Business Roundtable, which provided an opportunity for EU and Chinese leaders to exchange views with representatives of the business community. He delivered a keynote speech in which he said: "The EU is promoting multilateralism, stepping up to global challenges and defending our interests in the world. We will continue to defend a rules-based, open and fair trade. L'Europe est ouverte, mais pas offerte. Let's go forward together, promoting peace, growth and security."
Related links
Joint Statement following the 20th EU-China Summit
Remarks of President Jean-Claude Juncker at the press conference following the 20th EU-China Summit
Keynote speech of President Jean-Claude Juncker at the EU-China business roundtable