China, EU Pursue Stronger Bonds as Ties Mark 50 Years

2025-05-16

Organized by the EU Delegation to China, the conference titled "Encouraging Balance, Upholding Commitments, Embracing Responsibilities" is held in Beijing on May 14, 2025, drawing the participation of about 500 people. (Yin Yeping/GT)

Government and business representatives from China and the EU gathered at a cooperation conference in Beijing on Wednesday, as the two key trading partners and major economies celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations this year.

Against the backdrop of global headwinds, participants came together to explore how the EU and China have engaged in this "unique and unprecedented" relationship over the past five decades, according to the conference brochure.

Organized by the EU Delegation to China, the conference titled "Encouraging Balance, Upholding Commitments, Embracing Responsibilities" brought together about 500 participants from both sides. The event highlighted important areas where the two sides are highly complementary, including joint efforts to promote multilateralism and deepen cooperation in green development.

Michel Barnier, former prime minister of France and former EU commissioner, emphasized in his keynote address the importance of cooperation between the EU and China in maintaining economic stability, promoting free and fair global trade, and addressing climate change, along with other pressing global issues.

Speaking at Wednesday's conference, EU Ambassador to China Jorge Toledo said that this 50th anniversary is a golden opportunity to take stock of what has happened in the past five decades between the EU and China, examine the current challenges and together lay a solid foundation for the future.

"We are going to have a number of dialogues (this year) and we are going to hold the EU-China summit hopefully, at the end of July. Let's work toward deliverables and progress. It is extremely important right now when we are facing rapid and profound changes that we provide stability and that we provide progress in this uncertainty," Toledo said.

The EU ambassador also noted the need for both sides to find joint solutions to shared challenges and to deepen bilateral engagement and cooperation in the interest of regional and global security, prosperity and sustainable development.

Over the past 50 years, China-Europe relations have achieved comprehensive, balanced and sustainable development, said Li Jian, director-general for European affairs at China's Foreign Ministry, in a speech at the event.

The two sides have established high-level dialogues in key areas and established more than 70 dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, according to Li, noting that these cover a wide range of areas including the economy, politics, global governance and international affairs, forming a comprehensive, broad and multi-level framework for China-Europe cooperation.

Li said that both sides should focus on promoting two-way openness, expanding market access, supporting mutual investment and fostering a better business environment.

As China and the EU mark 50 years of diplomatic ties in 2025, their economic partnership is showing renewed strength and resilience, even against the backdrop of mounting global uncertainty, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Bilateral trade has expanded more than 320-fold over the past five decades, and it is now standing at about $780 billion, according to China's General Administration of Customs.

Among the fruitful bilateral economic and trade ties, cooperation in the green transition has been a highlight and was also mentioned at Wednesday's event. Speaking in an interview with the Global Times at the event, the Danish Ambassador to China Michael Starbæk Christensen said that "China has already done a lot in the green transition."

With new technologies emerging, Christensen said that there's so much more both China and the EU can do "to limit our emissions and to get this international framework going where we also help the developing countries who are in dire need, because they see the consequences."

In terms of China-Denmark ties, Christensen said that Denmark has worked with China for more than 20 years on energy and climate issues, and "we've been very close in the international climate negotiations and cooperation." He also mentioned the Chinese new-energy vehicle (NEV) sector, which he said is "quite successful and quite good," extending his expectation of seeing more Chinese NEVs in the Danish market in the future.

"Our current electric vehicle industry, green economy and the emerging digital economy may all need to adapt to new changes and form a new kind of complementary advantage with Europe... We can combine our strengths — such as technology and capital — with their local markets and talent to achieve mutually beneficial cooperation," Cui Hongjian, professor of the Academy of Regional and Global Governance at Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Wednesday. He also participated in the China-EU conference on Wednesday.

China and Europe are deeply and closely connected economically. Cui said that this closeness is not only reflected in areas such as trade and investment, but also in shared values as both sides pursue fair and free markets based on WTO rules and remain committed to resolving trade frictions and disputes through multilateral mechanisms and rules-based approaches.

Looking ahead, Cui said that there is a need for China and Europe to further strengthen cooperation, explore more areas of complementarity and contribute greater certainty amid the current global uncertainty.