Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to the European Union falls on an unusual time. First, Premier Wen is the first foreign state leader visiting EU member countries and the EU headquarters after EU's enlargement. Second, May 6 -- the day the Chinese Premier visited the EU headquarters -- was the 29th anniversary of China's establishment of formal relationship with the European Economic Community -- the predecessor of the EU. Third, Sino-EU relations saw remarkable achievements in 2003 and momentum had been gained for all-round cooperation. Commission of the EU and leaders of EU countries have recently, on various occasions, stressed giving priority to the development of relations with China and expressed their expectations of Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Europe to discuss specific measures for bilateral cooperation. No wonder when asked by a PD correspondent whether his European tour was a coincidence, the Premier said: "the visit is paid at the right time."

The itinerary of the visit to EU headquarters was well arranged. Apart from having talks with President Romano Prodi of the Commission of the EU, meetings with Secretary-general of the EU Council and High Representative for the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana, Premier Wen attended the China-EU Investment and Trade Symposium. He joined the gathering of about 500 Chinese and European entrepreneurs and delivered a speech, titled Vigorously Developing Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Between China and the European Union. Premier Wen expounded China's European policy in a comprehensive and profound way, filling the attendants' hearts with confidence in the prospect of Sino-EU relationship. In addition, Premier Wen and President Prodi jointly attended the signing ceremony for a series of documents and together they met with the press.

The speakers spoke with confidence and facility. The listeners listened with concentration and apperception. This was the impression each public activity left on the people. From the optimistic expressions in the talks, the vivid formulation of the speeches of Chinese and European leaders, and the many data they quoted, one could appreciate numerous valuable substances. What is especially enlightening was Premier Wen's expounding on China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership, which predicts the future trend of the China-EU relations.

He pointed out that "comprehensive" means that cooperation between both sides is all-round, wide-ranging and multi-level, it covers both economy, sci-technology, and politics and culture; both bilateral and multilateral; and both governmental and non-governmental.

"Strategic" means that bilateral cooperation is of an overall, long-term and stable nature, transcends the differences in ideology and social system and is free from the interference of a single event that occurs in a certain period of time.

"Partnership" means that the cooperation between both sides is of equality, mutual benefit and win-win result and, on the basis of mutual respect and mutual trust, the two sides seek common ground on major issues while shelving differences on minor ones and endeavor to expand common interests. The development of such a relationship between China and the EU not only conforms to the mutual interests of China and the EU, but also contributes to peace, stability and common progress in our respective regions and the world at large.

More than 300 years ago, the German philosopher G. W. Leibnitz wrote with passion: "The greatest culture and the most developed civilization of mankind seem to have converged on the two ends of our continent today, that is, on Europe and China on the other end of the globe." China's Confucian thought once influenced the Enlightenment Movement in Europe. Moreover the famed British scholar Joseph Needham pointed out in his Science and Civilization in China that Man has experienced three generations of civilization, of which China's paper making and printing technologies may be rated as the main signs of the emergence of the second and third generations of civilization. This signifies the promotion of European civilization by Chinese civilization. Today, in the 21st century, new concepts and new technologies have shortened the temporal and spatial distances between Europe and Asia. The political, economic and psychological distances are being narrowed down accordingly. Common interests and mutual understanding are growing increasingly.

As Premier Wen pointed out, China-EU relations are experiencing the most dynamic and the most fruitful period. It is especially worth noting that in 2003 China and the European Union decided to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership and signed a series of highly significant agreements such as the Memorandum of Understanding on Approved Destination Status aimed at facilitating travel of the general public and the Galileo Satellite Navigation Cooperation Agreement, which brings together the intellectual resources of both China and the EU. In addition, China became the second biggest trade partner of the EU last year with the Sino-EU trade volume amounting to US$125.2 billion and the EU investment in China adding up to US$27.9 billion. Up to the end of last year, there had been 16,802 projects with direct EU investment amounting to a total of US$75.3 billion.

Today's efforts determine the future of China-EU relations. People are expecting that the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and the European Union will make still greater contribution to the prosperity and stability of the regions and even the whole world.

(People’s Daily May 10, 2004)