European-Chinese Cooperation

The Bucharest summit of the Chinese and Central and East European prime ministers concluded with the adoption of the document entitled “Bucharest Guidelines, which provides for investment and economic cooperation to be fostered. To this end, China makes

Leyla Cheamil, 27.11.2013, 13:23

New and significant investment is to be made in Europe. Bucharest hosted a summit of the Chinese and Central and East European prime ministers, who adopted the document entitled “Bucharest Guidelines”. The document provides for the consolidation of cooperation in areas of mutual interest, laying emphasis on the fostering of investment, economic and trade cooperation. 2014 was declared the year of promoting investment in the relationship between Central and Eastern Europe and China. Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta said that this part of Europe was the most dynamic one from an economic point of view, boasting a significant potential of development in multiple fields and Beijing needed long term and reliable political friends and trade partners at world level.

PM Victor Ponta also referred to some of the guidelines in the document: “Continuing to hold annually both economic forums and summits at prime ministers’ level, the establishment of an association for promoting agricultural cooperation, the consolidation of cooperation in terms of investment in infrastructure and connectivity and railway transport networks. The guidelines we agreed on provide landmarks which we want to follow by concrete projects, sectoral projects and specific projects for each domestic economy.”

But cooperation will develop in other areas as well. Science, technology, innovation and the promotion of cultural exchanges will be other landmarks of cooperation between China and Central and East European states. The prime ministers attending the Bucharest summit also discussed concrete measures for facilitating free movement and fostering tourism between China and East and Central European countries.

All those plans require money and Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang believes that a special 10 billion US dollar credit line set up by China in keeping with EU regulations can successfully be put to best use. “We encourage more and more companies to use this special credit line and we also encourage our financial institutions to establish offices and branches in the other area, all this having the potential to build a prosperous Europe, a powerful European Union and a powerful Euro”, the Chinese Premier said in Bucharest.

According to him, the initial estimates suggest that between 2013 and 2020, China will import goods worth 3,000 billion US dollars from Europe alone and the business investment and the number of Chinese tourists to Europe will increase significantly. China is ready to cooperate with the countries in Central and Eastern Europe, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang pointed out, in order to create the necessary conditions for the access to the market, for residence visas and work permits to be obtained.