(Source: "Study Times" 2025-02-28)
In 2025, China and Europe will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. This important node marks the profound accumulation and broad prospects of bilateral relations. China-EU relations are an important part of international relations, and their development process is closely linked to the profound changes in the international landscape. China-EU relations face both opportunities and challenges. How to maintain strategic focus amid profound changes in the international landscape and jointly promote the development of China-EU relations has become the focus of research and attention in the theoretical academic community.
Over the past 50 years, China-EU relations have experienced both magnificent highs and ups and downs. The evolution of the international landscape has profoundly affected China-EU relations. China-EU relations have increasingly become a key variable in the international system and an important force in maintaining peace and promoting world multipolarity.
China and Europe are the two major forces promoting world multipolarity. China and the EU have always adhered to the principle of multilateralism and opposed unilateral intervention. In 2003, China and major European countries unanimously opposed the US-led war in Iraq and emphasized the peaceful resolution of disputes through the United Nations. China and the EU have also launched joint actions on many occasions to safeguard the authority of the multilateral system. For example, in 2019, China and the EU jointly spoke out during the United Nations General Assembly, supporting the core role of the United Nations in international affairs, holding a common position on the reform of the United Nations Security Council, supporting increasing the representation of developing countries, and opposing any country's use of unilateralism to undermine the international order. China and the EU jointly oppose unilateralism and promote the practice of democratization of international relations, making China-EU relations more strategic and influential in the world.
China and Europe are the two major markets that support economic globalization. As two important markets in the process of globalization, China and Europe have always played a key supporting role in promoting openness and cooperation in the world economy. The in-depth collaboration between the two sides in economic and w88 cooperation, investment liberalization, and w88 rule formulation has provided solid driving force and exemplary experience for globalization. At the economic and w88 level, China-EU bilateral w88 volume will exceed US$500 billion in 2024, making it one of the largest bilateral w88 relations in the world. In terms of investment liberalization, China and the EU successfully signed the China-EU Investment Agreement in 2020, and European direct investment in China continues to expand. In terms of economic and w88 rules, the cooperation between the two sides in emerging fields such as digital w88 rules and green financial standards not only fills the gap in global governance, but also provides a reference for other countries to follow in participating in the globalization process. At the same time, the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative has also promoted the connectivity of the Eurasian continent. As of the end of 2024, China-Europe trains have operated more than 100,000 trains, sending more than 11 million TEUs of goods with a value of more than 420 billion US dollars, covering 227 cities in 25 European countries, and has become an important logistics channel connecting China and Europe.
China and Europe are two major civilizations that advocate cultural diversity. China and Europe have always played a leading role in advocating and practicing cultural diversity, and jointly built a bridge for multicultural dialogue and exchange. As the carrier of Chinese civilization, China has preserved a rich cultural tradition with a long history of more than 5,000 years; Europe, as the center of Western civilization, has brought together the blending and development of multiple cultures. It is the interaction and dialogue between these two civilizations that provides valuable experience and inspiration for the progress of human civilization. China's Confucius Institutes are booming across Europe, providing an important platform for European people to learn Chinese and understand Chinese culture. At the same time, European countries have also demonstrated the diversity of European culture to China through cultural festivals, art exhibitions and other forms. The concept of "civilizational exchanges and mutual learning" proposed by China coincides with the idea of "multicultural coexistence" emphasized by Europe. In the global cause of safeguarding cultural diversity, China and Europe have always opposed the tendency of cultural hegemony and cultural homogeneity. This consensus on values provides a solid foundation for both sides to promote the establishment of a more fair and reasonable cultural exchange mechanism in international affairs.
At present, the international situation is intertwined with chaos, unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, and the world is facing camp formation, fragmentation and disorder. As the two major forces promoting multipolarity, the two major markets that support globalization, and the two major civilizations that advocate diversity, China and the EU need to maintain strategic focus and work together to meet challenges.
To maintain strategic focus, we must first realize that China and Europe have a broad basis of common interests and are partners for mutual success. Currently, China and the EU are each other's second largest trading partners. The total bilateral import and export w88 between China and the EU will reach US$783 billion in 2023, an increase of 7.2% in ten years, and the average w88 exchange per minute is nearly US$1.5 million. The stock of two-way investment between China and Europe will exceed US$250 billion in 2023. The EU's investment in China has increased by 62.6% in ten years and has remained generally stable in recent years. More importantly, China-EU economic and w88 relations have complementary advantages, highly coordinated development strategies, and sufficient market confidence. In 2024, EU leader von der Leyen will improve Europe's competitiveness as Europe's top priority in the next five years, emphasizing the dual transformation of digital technology and green industry. In fact, China has been deeply involved in the EU's competitiveness strategy in emerging fields such as green energy, smart manufacturing, biomedicine, artificial intelligence, and third-party markets through technical cooperation and market access, and has formed a mutually beneficial and symbiotic relationship with Europe through mutual achievements.
Insisting on dialogue and communication and avoiding strategic misjudgments between China and Europe are the keys to maintaining strategic focus. China and Europe have no fundamental conflict of interests and no geopolitical contradictions. The common interests of China and the EU far outweigh their differences. The key is to avoid strategic misjudgments. In 2019, the European Commission released the "Europe-China Strategic Outlook", which regarded China as a partner, competitor and institutional rival of the EU at the same time. The problem is that such a triple positioning has brought many unnecessary interferences and obstacles to the development of China-EU relations. For example, China-EU w88 frictions have been deliberately exaggerated as a security threat to Europe, China's technology and goods exported to Europe have been stigmatized and demonized, and targeted investment reviews and w88 investigations have become stumbling blocks to the development of China-EU relations. The correct positioning of China-EU relations should be that of partnership, the mainstream tone should be cooperation, and the development prospects should be win-win. In 2024, President Xi Jinping successfully paid a historic visit to Europe. In the same year, many European leaders visited China, and high-level leaders from both sides continued to have in-depth strategic communication. Facts have proved that China has confidence in Europe, and China and Europe should view their relations with each other from a long-term and strategic perspective.
Maintaining strategic focus requires a clear understanding of the general trend of development. China and the EU must further cooperate to promote the reform of the global governance system. Looking back at history, China and the EU have demonstrated a high degree of consistency and coordination on cross-border governance issues such as climate change, global public health, and emerging technological challenges. In terms of the reform of international rules of multilateralism, China and the EU have cooperated closely under the framework of the United Nations and carried out joint actions around peacekeeping and cybersecurity governance, demonstrating both sides' firm support for multilateralism. In terms of global development and poverty reduction, the integration of the Belt and Road Initiative and the EU's "Connecting Europe" initiative has provided substantial support for the development of the Global South. At present, uncertain and unstable factors are intertwined. The international community is looking forward to a healthy and stable China-EU relationship more than ever before, and is looking forward to China and Europe becoming a constructive force in changing the world. In the face of global challenges, China-EU cooperation is even more meaningful.
China-EU relations are an important variable in the evolution of the international landscape and an important force in promoting world peace and development. In the face of major changes unseen in a century, China and the EU should maintain strategic focus, adopt a more open and inclusive attitude, deepen cooperation, respond to challenges, promote the development of China-EU relations for the better, work together to build a community with a shared future for mankind, and provide the world with more stability and certainty.
(The author is the Dean of the w88 casino of International Relations and the Dean of the Institute of National Security and Governance of the w88 casino)
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