The ambassador was speaking at a news conference about the China and German Environmental Protection Cooperation Conference, which is to open next Tuesday in Beijing.

The conference will be the ever largest bilateral meeting between China and Germany.

During the two-day conference about 900 representatives, including 400 from Germany, will hold talks to review Sino-German cooperation in environmental protection and discuss how to further develop such ties.

Topics will include the efficient use of resources, precautions against pollution and environmental-protection-oriented city planning, said the ambassador. Germany also hopes new ideas about environmental protection will be generated at the conference, he added.

China and Germany should cooperate in environmental protection as both countries must solve problems resulting from industrialization, he said. Such cooperation can also help enhance the relationship between the two countries, he added.

The ambassador said enterprise participation in environmental protection is important, adding that ties between Chinese enterprises and German ones is the key point of Sino-German cooperation.

Among the 400 German representatives, about 250 will be from businesses, most of which are small and medium-sized.

(China Daily 12/09/2000)