China and the EU have reached a consensus against unilateralism, protectionism and support for a multilateral trade system at their latest round of High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue.
The dialogue has been co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on Monday.
Following the talks, Liu He says both sides support multilateralism and should work together to boost world economy.
"As we all know, this dialogue is held against a very special backdrop when unilateralism and trade protectionism are on the rise and tensions appear in the economic relations between major economies. Both sides agreed to resolutely oppose unilateralism and protectionism, and committed to defend the multilateral trading system that is centered on the WTO and based on rules, to promote the economic cooperation that is more open, inclusive, balanced, and beneficial to all, to reform the multilateral trading system, and keep it advancing with the times, and to improve the global institutions for economic governance."
Liu He says China and EU have agreed to work together to accelerate the process allowing China to participate in an European government procurement agreement.
Both of them have also agreed to promote market access for agricultural products, as well as deals to certify organic products.
The EU has agreed to accelerate the legislative process and formulate a timetable on recognizing the qualification of Chinese certification authorities.
Liu He also said that there will be cooperation in many areas between the two economies.
"The two sides agreed to continue connecting the Belt and Road Initiative to Europe's development strategies, work together to promote the establishment and development of the China-EU connectivity platform as well as the China-EU investment fund. The two sides also agreed to further practical cooperation in areas of digital economy, E-commerce, Circular Economy, and White Pollution Prevention."
European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen notes China and EU account for one-third of the world's current GDP.
Katainen says the EU wants to work with China to safeguard free trade rules and the multilateral trade mechanism.
"Our shared focus is to show our support for the WTO, as a center of the rules based on the multilateral trading system. We need to demonstrate the adherence to the international trading rules and cooperate on reform to help the WTO meet new challenges."
Trade volume between China and the EU increased by 7.3 percent in the first five months this year compared with the same period last year.
The China-EU forum has been held since 2007.
