China and the EU signed a series of agreements in Beijing yesterday on the sidelines of the eighth China-EU summit in a bid to facilitate their all-round strategic partnership.
On Monday afternoon, Premier Wen Jiabao met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, President of the European Commission Manuel Barroso, and EU Council Secretary-General Javier Solana.
Following the meeting, China and the EU signed agreements relating to transportation, environmental protection, space development and the renovation of Beijing Capital International Airport. The two sides also issued a joint statement on the summit, and a Joint Declaration on Climate Change.
The two sides exchanged views on China-EU relations and major international affairs of mutual concern.
Both sides agreed that enhancing the all-round strategic partnership between China and the EU is in the interests of the two sides and conducive to peace, stability and development in the world.
In related news, an agreement has been reached that should resolve the problem of millions of China-made textiles stockpiled at EU ports.
Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai and EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson signed the agreement in Beijing on Monday night.
Bo said that the agreement embodied a "cooperative and win-win" spirit.
The agreement is "fair and rational from the perspective of both key principles and minor details," Bo said.
"I agree with the way Mandelson has put it. That is to say, Sino-EU economic and trade relations are full of vigor and mutually needed and can achieve a win-win result through exchanges and cooperation," he added.
Although the stockpile problem has troubled both sides, Bo said, it indicates that the EU market needs China-made products and that Chinese manufacturers and exporters regard the EU market as important.
"At least in the sphere of textile trade, China and the EU depend on and value each other," Bo said.
The just-ended discussions had aroused the concern of top leadership of both China and the EU, he added.
The impasse between China and the EU over the blocked textile products has left stores in EU countries short of seasonal clothes to sell.
Some 80 million items of Chinese clothing were prevented from entering the EU market after new quotas agreed to with China in June were reached.
(Xinhua News Agency, China.org.cn September 6, 2005)
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