(Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)
Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Wednesday that cooperation between China and Germany is the only optimal solution to deal with risks, and development is the only option for both sides to ensure security.
Li made the remarks at a symposium of the China-Germany Economic Consultative Committee in Beijing, which he attended with visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“The more serious the situation, the more China and Germany must strengthen their cooperation,” Li said.
Amid growing instability and uncertainty affecting the global economy, Li said China and Germany, as two major economies and through continued close cooperation, have not only expanded their own development space, but also created engines for the global economy.
He pointed out that both the Chinese and German economies are showing positive recovery momentum and there will be greater space for economic and trade cooperation between the two countries during the 15th Five-Year Plan period starting this year.
The fundamental cooperation model between China and Germany, characterized by industrial complementarity, has not changed, and the areas in which the two countries can collaborate far exceed those in which they compete, Li said, adding that it is entirely possible to promote common development by establishing a healthy relationship defined by both competition and cooperation.
With a view to achieving higher-level mutually beneficial results, Li called on China and Germany to coordinate efforts in three main areas.
First, he called for strengthening the foundation of traditional cooperation, inviting companies from the two countries to continue to deepen cooperation in fields such as machinery, equipment and chemical industry, and accelerate the localization of their businesses.
Secondly, regarding new opportunities for future development, the two countries should support enterprises and scientific research institutes to promote two-way flows of innovative resources, join hands to explore third-party markets, and conduct in-depth joint research on technology and platform construction to share the results of their cooperation, the prime minister said.
Third, Li called for creating a favorable environment for investment and business. China will unswervingly pursue high-level opening-up and actively respond to reasonable requests from German-invested enterprises and other countries, Li said, expressing China’s hope that the German government will provide an open, fair and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises operating in the country.
China also hopes that Chinese and German entrepreneurs will play a key role in promoting economic and trade cooperation, improving communication and understanding between the two sides, and promoting the stability of bilateral relations, Li added.
Noting that Germany and China are each other’s important trading partners, Merz said the bilateral economic and trade relations, characterized by vitality, have seen sustained high-level development over the years, effectively promoting the economic growth of the two countries.
He added that Germany is committed to mutual learning and exchange of experiences with China, as well as strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation in fields such as automobiles, chemical industry, machinery, renewable energy and digital economy, with a view to promoting common prosperity and supporting the stable and long-term development of Germany-China relations.
Germany supports German companies in strengthening their investments in the Chinese market, is willing to continuously improve its business environment, and encourages more Chinese companies to invest and establish themselves in Germany, so as to create jobs and strengthen connectivity, Merz said.
