This report on the webinar organised by the Belt and Road Institute in Sweden on March 19, was produced by the China Social Science News, of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. This is a translation of the original Chinese version.
50th Anniversary of China-EU Diplomatic Relations: Tackling New Global Challenges and Opening a New Era of Cooperation Together
By Ren Guanhong
In 1975, China and the European Economic Community (EEC), the predecessor of the European Union (EU), formally established diplomatic relations. Looking back on the past half-century, China-EU relations have made remarkable achievements in various fields and demonstrated profound potential for cooperation. 2025 will mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the EU, which is a key point for carrying forward and starting up. Standing on a new starting point, the prospects for cooperation in the next 50 years are even broader, full of opportunities and challenges. Recently, scholars from Sweden, Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Serbia, Slovenia and other countries held an online discussion on how China and the EU can continue to uphold the concepts of mutual respect and win-win cooperation, and how to further deepen the strategic cooperation between the two sides in the face of the complexity of the globalization process.
Europe at the crossroads: choices and responses
At a time when the world is undergoing unprecedented changes, Europe is also at a historic crossroads. Against the backdrop of this globalized transformation, Stephen Brawer, Director of the Swedish Institute for Belt and Road Studies, described the current situation in Europe in a graphic way, borrowing an idea from the German poet and philosopher Friedrich Schiller. In a lecture entitled “What is World History and Why Do We Study It?”, Schiller introduced the concepts of the philosophical thinker and the “bread scholar” (or “careerist”). The philosophical thinker sees and responds to great changes, thinks deeply about reality, and pursues truth, while the careerist defends established forms and limits knowledge to narrow personal interests. According to Schiller, it is the creative thinker, the philosophical mind, that truly shapes world history, not the conformist bureaucrat or the visionless politician. In Schiller’s view, this distinction can have a decisive impact on the success of a society or civilization’s transformation, and in an age of uncertainty such as today’s, it is especially important to embrace the thinking of philosophical thinkers.
At present, the EU has become a huge bureaucracy dominated by careerists, with little creative philosophical thinking beyond the established agenda, Brawer said. Because policymaking is dominated by careerist thinking and lacks a true democratic spirit, the EU is unable to engage in genuine self-reflection and instead blames its internal problems on so-called external “security threats”. This kind of thinking is based on the “law of the jungle”, a concept that lacks a foundation of trust, and will only lead Europe to return to the old path of militarization and confrontation, while ignoring another path of win-win cooperation based on philosophical thinking. “The European Commission is discussing the use of 800 billion euros for military spending, which will only be used to kill and will not contribute to the improvement of people’s lives,” Brawer criticized.
On March 7, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Minister of Foreign Affairs, answered questions from Chinese and foreign journalists on issues related to China’s foreign policy and external relations, saying that the world today is in a state of flux and chaos, and that certainty is increasingly becoming a scarce global resource. The choices made by countries, especially the big ones, will determine the direction of the times and influence the world pattern. On this, Brawer deeply agreed. According to him, “choice” is an important issue for Europe, which will profoundly affect the direction of China-EU relations and the future of Europe. The establishment of diplomatic relations requires humility and vision. Arrogance and short-sightedness cannot build a true friendship. Europe needs a new way of thinking, and China’s “Belt and Road” initiative represents this new thinking. Brauer said that the roots of “One Belt, One Road” can be traced back to China’s civilization history of more than 5,000 years, carrying the wisdom of the great thinkers of Chinese history, such as Laozi, Confucius, Mencius, etc. Over the past many centuries, China’s “Silk Road” has been a source of inspiration for the Chinese people. For many centuries, China has been one of the most advanced civilizations in the world, but it has never aimed to dominate others. Instead, it has upheld the philosophy of the great sages – that human nature is essentially good.
From this historical perspective, Brawer believes that the Belt and Road Initiative is about much more than infrastructure and economic gains, and that it embodies what Schiller calls philosophical thinking. That is why Europe should choose to cooperate with the Belt and Road Initiative. “In this current wave of global change, choosing to cooperate may be the ‘road less traveled’, but in the end, it will have an impact that will last for generations to come,” Brawer said.
China’s steady way: injecting stability into the world
Against the backdrop of intensifying global turmoil, many countries are gradually realizing that China, with its strong economic power and stable foreign policy, is providing an important stabilizing factor for the world. Wan Degang, chargé d’affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Sweden, said China has been the world’s second-largest economy for more than 10 consecutive years, contributing about 30 percent to global economic growth every year. In addition, China is also a major trading partner of more than 150 countries and regions, and has long maintained its position as the world’s largest trader of goods and the second largest importer. It can be said that China is an indispensable part of the stable and smooth flow of the global supply chain and industrial chain. In recent years, China has vigorously developed new quality productivity and promoted the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation. Through high-quality development, China has injected momentum into the transformation and upgrading of the global economy. In the face of insufficient momentum in the global economic recovery and increasing uncertainty in international economic and trade cooperation, China has set its expected target for gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2025 at around 5 percent. “The setting of the new target releases a clear signal to the world that China will unswervingly promote high-quality development despite all the challenges it faces, and strive to boost confidence in the global economy and inject more stability into the world economy, which is full of uncertainties,” Wandegan said.
Eric Solheim, former Minister of International Development of Norway and former Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, pointed out that the current trade war initiated by the United States Government around the world had further aggravated the instability of the global market. In an environment full of uncertainties, the willingness to invest is generally low, both in the government and the private sector. And China is responding, and in many ways is better prepared than Europe. China’s initiatives to boost domestic consumption, international trade, and technological innovation are not only good for itself, but also good for the world. First, China is expanding its home market, which will not only benefit Chinese industrial and economic development but will also provide a larger export market for Europe, Africa and elsewhere, as well as boosting international tourism.
At a time when globalization is facing a crisis, this is undoubtedly an extremely important preventive initiative. Secondly, China will cooperate with more trading partners. Today, China’s trade with ASEAN is larger than that between China and the United States. In fact, at least 120 countries around the world have recognized China as a major trading partner. So even if U.S.-China trade is met with resistance from the U.S., China still has many options. In contrast, countries that are more dependent on the U.S. are more vulnerable to pressure from the U.S. government. Solheim mentioned that China has invested in photovoltaic projects in Bangladesh, which not only helps protect the local environment, but also promotes economic growth and job creation in Bangladesh. In addition, the world’s largest electric car maker BYD has also announced that it may set up a factory in Germany, an investment that is crucial to the German auto industry, which is in crisis, and will enable China’s most advanced technology to combine with Germany’s strong automotive industry capabilities to form a much-anticipated cooperative project.
Solheim said that one of the key messages of this year’s “Two Sessions” in China is innovation, and that Deepseek is an important result of Chinese innovation, but also very beneficial to the world, because it provides an open public platform for all countries on which any company can develop its business, at a much lower cost than using the expensive “Silicon Valley” products.
Solheim said that if the West could work hand in hand with China and the world at large in an era of multipolarity, the likelihood of success on all major issues (economic development, regional peace, combating climate change, preventing pandemics, etc.) would be greatly enhanced. “In a world where all sides are wavering in their positions and struggling to find their way, China has stepped up as ‘the adult in the room’. For European countries, which are generally in a state of confusion, China is particularly important as a force for economic and political stability”, commented Solheim.
“One Belt, One Road”: Working Together for Common Development
The essence of Sino-European relations lies in mutual benefit and win-win situation, and the Belt and Road Initiative, as an important cooperation framework proposed by China, not only brings great opportunities in the economic field, but also pushes forward the in-depth development of Sino-European relations. Prof. Bojan Lalic, director of the Belt and Road Institute in Belgrade, pointed out that the framework of the EU’s balanced regional development program is good, but most of the funds actually flowed to Western Europe, while the pace of development in Eastern Europe is slower and cannot be synchronized with that of Western Europe. As an Eastern European country that has not yet joined the EU, Serbia’s backward infrastructure construction has seriously constrained its economic and social development.
For years, Serbia has been seeking solutions. Since 2015, China-Serbia relations have developed closely, and cooperation between the two sides under the framework of the “Belt and Road” has yielded remarkable results, Lalić observed. China has provided Serbia with a large number of loans for local infrastructure and industrial development. Many Chinese automobile manufacturers have settled in Serbia and expanded their production capacity year by year, providing a large number of local employment opportunities. Meanwhile, the Hungarian-Serbian Railway Project, an important infrastructure project in Eastern Europe, connecting Budapest, the capital of Hungary, and Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, is progressing steadily as one of the landmark projects of the Belt and Road Initiative. Upon completion of the project, the journey from Budapest to Belgrade will be shortened from 8 hours to about 3 hours.
“It is very important to build ‘bridges’ – not only physical bridges, but also cooperation ties established through various agreements and contracts,” Lalic said, adding that Serbia and China signed a free trade agreement, becoming China’s first free trade partner among the Central and Eastern European countries. Although the EU sees this agreement as a challenge, in Serbia’s view it is actually a bridge between China and Europe. There seems to be two different Europes within the EU, one traditional and the other influenced by some powerful external forces. Lalic believes that Europe is awakening, a process that will promote many new forms of cooperation. Although this process will not be easy, in the future Europe will tend to favor more autonomous cooperation with China. “At the moment, we can’t tell whether the economic problems are more serious or the lack of a strong economic philosophy is more serious, but only those countries with a stable political philosophy and a philosophy of economic development will be able to cope with the current changes in the world. We must work deeply with China while remaining patient, allowing future generations to understand and set long-term goals”, Lalic said.
Bernd Einmeier, president of the Sino-German Friendship Association, pointed out that Germany’s policy toward China has been in a flurry over the past few years, and some politicians in particular have been disappointing on the issue of China. “Most Germans are exposed to filtered information about China, which makes it difficult for many to form a holistic understanding of China. And the truth is that we need to listen to the real voices of the Chinese because we live on the same planet and must face global challenges such as recession and climate change together”, Bernd commented. At a time when Germany is facing multiple difficulties both economically and politically, the cooperation with China has certainly brought positive signals, “Siemens announced 6,000 job cuts, while BYD plans to create 500 new jobs in Germany, and the China-Europa train that extends to Duisburg, Germany, is also a success story”. Bernd emphasized the importance of Sino-German relations and the need for Germany to actively participate in building the “Belt and Road” in the face of rising nationalism across the globe and to find the right way to work with China, the BRICS and the Global South to build a stable partnership.
Hussein Askary, Deputy Director of the Belt and Road Institute of Sweden, also shared his views and outlook on China-EU cooperation. Askary pointed out that while Europe is still discussing the use of 800 billion euros for military expenditures, China is investing heavily in infrastructure in many countries and regions to improve the local economy and people’s livelihood. He argued that China’s Belt and Road Initiative and other approaches to promoting international cooperation are not just economic and political initiatives, but also contain Chinese philosophical concepts. “If you want to become richer, you have to make your neighbor richer, and that’s the Chinese philosophy.” Askary observes that China has long provided extensive aid to Africa and is committed to the continent’s sustainable development. China has carried out hundreds of clean energy and infrastructure development projects in Africa in recent years, and is turning potential into reality with solid actions.
In these cooperative projects, Askary sees the potential of Sino-European cooperation. Compared with Europe today, Africa has a rapidly growing population with a young age structure, he said. In addition, the continent’s rich natural resources have not yet been effectively developed. In most parts of Africa, backward infrastructure is a serious constraint to economic development. If China and Europe can work together to promote the modernization of Africa, it will bring huge development opportunities to many parties. Europeans are complaining about the influx of thousands of refugees, but our politicians are not really focusing on how to solve the source of the problem,” Askary noted. The solution is not simply to stop the influx of refugees at the border, but to ensure that they can have a better life in their own countries. Unfortunately, the EU is not doing much about this, but China is bringing electricity, roads and railroads to the continent through the Belt and Road Initiative.” Askary emphasized that Europe must change many of its views on China-Europe, China-Africa and Europe-Africa relations, and pay attention to dialogue and cooperation with China.
Looking to the future: embracing the next 50 years together
As the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Europe approaches, cooperation between the two sides is ushering in new opportunities. Li Xing, professor of international relations at the Department of Politics and Society of Aalborg University in Denmark and a leading scholar at the Guangdong Institute for International Strategic Studies of the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, believes that the two most important tasks facing Europe are economic recovery and strategic autonomy, both of which are closely related to China. Building the Belt and Road together can provide economic opportunities for Europe. Europe has benefited greatly from the Belt and Road Initiative since it was launched in 2013. In addition to Serbia, which has received significant infrastructure investment from China, Hungary has attracted significant investment from China in battery manufacturing. The Piraeus Port in Athens, Greece, once a decaying port, has become one of the busiest ports in Europe under the effective operation of COSCO Shipping Group. The Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Center Development Index (ISCDI) Report 2024 shows that the Port of Piraeus has risen to 7th place in the international rankings.
Railroads are also an important example. In the early days of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, some European scholars predicted that sanctions against Russia would lead to the blocking of China-Europe Express Rail. However, the opposite happened, and the China-Europe liner became more prosperous. Li observed that stores specializing in European goods are on the rise in Chengdu because of the China-Europe railway’s stopover in the city. More and more European products are entering China through the railroad, which means Europe can earn considerable income. This shows that the international cooperation made possible by the Belt and Road Initiative is fruitful. Therefore, Europe should not be bound by the so-called “de-risking” or “decoupling” thinking. “Europe should rethink its relationship with China and seize the opportunity of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations to promote cooperation. Despite their different positions and views on some issues, I believe common ground can still be found,” Li concluded.
Jan-Menke Hopma, Founder and Chairman of Innovasian Bridge in the Netherlands, agreed that Europe should emphasize cooperation with China in key areas such as green energy in the future. In addition, in terms of digital technology and AI governance, Europe should also participate in the development of global AI and cybersecurity standards with China to ensure openness. In terms of supply chain resilience, the Netherlands can leverage its logistics expertise to establish stable and diversified trade routes with China based on the Port of Rotterdam.
Dr. Tomaz Amon, President of the Slovenian-Chinese Friendship Association, spoke from his own experience of the different stages of development in China and Europe. Amon recalled that in the 1970s, when he was still attending school in Yugoslavia, Western Europe was a model of economic development and social stability in the eyes of the local people. By the 1980s, Yugoslavia suffered from hyperinflation, and the first thing people did after receiving their paychecks was to go to the black market to exchange their money for German marks. However, Amon said that after entering the 21st century, he gradually realized that Europe’s political system still has room for improvement. At the same time, China has shown rapid changes.
Amon mentioned that he had visited China twice, in 2005 and 2024. Visiting China again after 19 years, he marveled at the great changes in China. What touched him even more was the peaceful and friendly attitude of the Chinese people from the very beginning. “Unlike some Western countries, the Chinese are willing to communicate on an equal footing, even in a small country like Slovenia”, Amon said. With the opening and running of the China-EU train, Beijing-Moscow-Budapest-Slovenia will be connected. This trans-Eurasian steel artery carries 123 international routes to 21 countries, injecting “stabilizers” into the global supply chain in a century of change. Amon said, in the next 50 years, Slovenia looks forward to the new “Silk Road” and China to carry out more in-depth dialogue and cooperation.
The year 2025 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Europe. In this half-century-long relationship, the most valuable asset is mutual respect, the strongest impetus is mutual benefit and win-win, the broadest consensus is multilateralism, and the most correct direction is cooperation. As Wan Degang said, China and the EU are fully capable and wise enough to properly resolve the current problems they face through friendly consultation, and jointly open the next 50 brighter years.
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE WEBINAR!