Ambassador: B&R Initiative benefits China and Europe

China-EU cooperation has reached an unprecedented high level and the two sides share more converging interests, said Yang Yanyi, ambassador and head of the Chinese Mission to the European Union (EU), in Brussels, Economic Daily reports.

Yang said, "Strengthening healthy and steady development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation conforms to the common interests of both sides and complies with the trend of the times."As both China and the EU are accelerating structural reform to boost social and economic development, it is of great significance for mutual growth that the two sides make an alignment between their development plans and further strengthen convergence of interests, according to Yang. 

"More people in the EU recognize that the Belt and Road construction is 'an important project with long-term significance', 'China's second round of opening up', and will create more opportunities for bilateral trade," Yang said. 

The 17th China-EU Leaders' Meeting in Brussels in 2015 agreed to integrate the initiative with the EU's investment plan. 

Yang said China and the EU are actively exploring the concrete cooperation methods to translate the agreement into reality, for example, establishing China-EU investment funds, China-EU interconnectivity platforms and promoting transport infrastructure construction cooperation. 

The EU pays high attention to the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation which will be held in Beijing on May 14 and 15, and Jyrki Katainen, European commissioner for jobs, growth, investment and competitiveness, will attend the event. 

Yang said China is willing to align with the EU's development plan to make a larger cake of shared-interests.

The EU has repeatedly said it hopes to, through the forum, further integrate its development plans with the initiative and boost Belt and Road construction so as to inject more impetus into world economic growth, lay a more solid foundation for regional cooperation, create more convenient interconnectivity conditions for China-EU exchanges and bring more benefits to all peoples.

Yang noted that China's investment in the EU is mutual beneficial and protectionism in trade deserves attention of both sides. 

The two sides should support economic globalization and trade and investment facilitation and liberalization, and resist various forms of protectionism, Yang added.