China, Germany seek stronger cooperation as Merkel visits

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel hold a joint press conference after their talks, at the Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, capital of China, May 24, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Tao)

China and Germany agreed in Beijing on Thursday to step up win-win cooperation and especially in emerging industries such as artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles.

The agreement was made between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In their talks at the Great Hall of the People, Li proposed giving full play to the role of bilateral institutional dialogues in various areas, make good arrangement for the new round of China-Germany inter-governmental consultation, and enhance exchanges in such areas as finance, trade, investment and security.

Li welcomed German companies to invest in China, and expected Germany to offer fair and open environment as well as stable institution guarantee for Chinese investment in Germany and Europe.

Li called for stronger China-Germany cooperation in digitalization and innovation, proposing to cement cooperation in emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, new energy vehicle, vehicle networking and autopilot, in a bid to foster a new engine of bilateral cooperation.

He called on both countries to combine development strategies, facilitate people-to-people exchanges as well as cultural, educational and tourism cooperation.

Chinese government supports the two countries to exchange interns, to learn from each other's professional skills, Li said.

China hopes to step up negotiation of a bilateral investment treaty with Europe, he said, vowing to join with the European Union to advocate multilateralism and safeguard multilateral trade system, and promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation.

As this year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up, Li said China will open its door wider to the world.

China will further expand market access, ease restrictions on foreign ownership of joint ventures in automobile and finance industries, enhance protection of intellectual property rights, and accelerate the establishment of a market environment that is in compliance with regulations and fair competition, Li said.

Merkel, who is on her 11th China visit as German chancellor, said her government highly values relations with China.

Germany is ready to enhance cooperation with China in such areas as trade, technology and autopilot, she said, adding Germany hopes to contribute to stronger EU-China ties, and supports to speed up negotiation of EU-China investment treaty.

Before their talks, Li held a welcome ceremony for Merkel.

They also attended a meeting of China-German Economic Advisory Committee after their talks, and had exchanges with enterprises of both countries on investment environment, two-way openness, financial cooperation and protection of intellectual property rights.

Li called on Germany to treat Chinese companies as equal and trustworthy partners, and offer a more fair and easier environment for Chinese investment in Germany.

Merkel said she hopes the two countries would offer equal access for mutual investment of their enterprises.

16+1 COOPERATION OPEN AND TRANSPARENT

The 16+1 cooperation carried out within the framework of China-Europe relationship and under European Union (EU) laws and regulations is open and transparent, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said Thursday.

Li made the remarks when meeting with journalists together with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after they held talks in Beijing.

Li said the 16+1 cooperation, a cooperation mechanism between China and 16 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, is an important part and beneficial supplement of China-Europe relations.

It is conducive to the common development of China and the CEE countries, a more balanced development of Europe, and the European integration process, he said.

China has always firmly supported the European integration and believes that a united, stable, prosperous EU and a strong euro are in China's fundamental interests, Li said.

"The 16+1 cooperation has always been carried out within the framework of China-Europe ties and under relevant EU laws and regulations. It is open and transparent," Li said, adding that China and Germany should combine their complementary advantages with the development needs of the CEE countries in order to explore third-party market cooperation.

Merkel said the 16+1 cooperation is a beneficial platform that enhances the infrastructure construction in the CEE countries.

She also said the advantages of the CEE countries and China complement each other and the 16+1 cooperation can benefit the EU, rather than split it.

Merkel is on an official visit to China on Thursday and Friday. Besides Beijing, she will also fly to Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong Province.