Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner (right) held a joint press conference after their meeting.

On 4 February 2010, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, who was on an official visit to France, delivered a speech titled “Toward Greater Understanding, Cooperation and Common Development” at the French Institute of International Relations and answered questions from the audience.

Yang Jiechi said, the French Institute of International Relations, one of the most influential European research institutes in the field of international studies, has shown consistent interest in China’s development and been committed to the friendly ties between China and France and between China and the EU. He said, how one should view China’s development and China-France and China-EU relations is of wide interest to various parties. Over the past 60 years since the founding of the People’s Republic and especially over the past 30 years since reform and opening-up, China has found a development path suited to its national conditions. Its overall national strength has steadily increased and international standing risen rapidly. But China remains a developing country and to achieve modernization, it has to work long and hard.

Yang Jiechi said, the world last year experienced the worst economic woes since the 1930s and China encountered the greatest economic difficulties since the turn of the century. Yet China rose up to the challenge and scored notable achievements in countering the international financial crisis. Against the backdrop of a deep global recession, the Chinese economy was among the first to turn around and its GDP grew by 8.7%, contributing over 50% of the world economic growth and giving a strong boost to the global economic recovery.

Yang Jiechi stated, China cannot develop in isolation from the world and the world needs China for development. As a large and responsible country, China is a staunch force for world peace and common development. It is firmly committed to the path of peaceful development, the win-win strategy of opening-up and the vision of building a harmonious world of enduring peace and common prosperity.

On China-France relations, Yang Jiechi pointed out that since China and France established diplomatic ties 46 years ago, China-France relations have made great strides. Even during the Cold War, the two countries worked together and overcame the divide caused by a bipolar structure. Entering the new era, the two sides have built a comprehensive strategic partnership and worked side by side for a multi-polar world. The strategic importance of this relationship has long gone beyond the bilateral scope and acquired international significance. It has also brought tangible benefits to the two countries and two peoples.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi (first on the right), paying an official visit to France, had talks with French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner (first on the left) in Paris.

Yang Jiechi said, at their meeting in London last April, President Hu Jintao and President Nicolas Sarkozy charted the course for the sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations. At the end of last year, President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiaobao held talks with Prime Minister Francois Fillon. The two sides reached consensus on a host of important issues. China-France relations now face important opportunities for development in 2010. China wants to work with France, on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, to increase political mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, enhance cultural and people-to-people exchanges and elevate China-France relations to a higher level.

On China-EU relations, Yang Jiechi stated that both China and the EU have grown into important forces with strategic significance in the world. The two sides have forged an all-dimensional, wide-ranging and multi-tiered framework of cooperation and established a comprehensive strategic partnership. They have put in place an annual summit mechanism and 17 political consultation mechanisms and launched negotiations on the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. Bilateral trade has seen a 176-fold increase in 35 years, making the EU China’s largest trading partner and China the EU’s second largest trading partner.

Yang Jiechi said, the comprehensive progress in China-EU relations gives full expression to the broad common interests between the two sides. Under the new circumstances, the two sides should seize opportunities, remove interferences, continue to treat each other as equals and with mutual respect, step up practical cooperation, deepen consultation and coordination, reject trade protectionism and work together to tackle global challenges so that China-EU relations will grow more robust.

Before making this speech, Yang Jiechi met with President Thierry de Montbrial of the French Insitute of International Relations.