By Artur Nura
Last Friday afternoon, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, who was in Beijing for an official visit at the invitation of Chinese counterpart Li Qiang. When important visitors also meet with President Jinping, generally such developments demonstrate that the dialogue between the parties is towards a positive and significant progress.
In the case of China-Belgium relations, which are already in their 53rd year and where there have been ups and downs, it can be said that they are considered by both parties as fruitful and with a complimentary economic yield.
But Alexander De Croo’s visit to Beijing not only coincides with this anniversary of bilateral relations, but also with the fact that Belgium took over the next presidency of the European Union on January 1, 2024, a task that it will hold for six months, until June.
In fact, this will be the 13th mandate for Belgium and it is expected that the Belgian presidency will work on strengthening cooperation between EU countries, but in this troubled global situation with conflicts, the mandate of the Belgian Prime Minister must be committed to a more efficient global dialogue with important actors who can positively influence against unsustainable developments.
Economy in China Belgium relations
“The Chinese side welcomes Belgian companies to invest in China and is willing to provide them with a good business environment, and also hopes that the Belgian side will also create a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese companies.” – President Xi stated, further emphasizing that China and Belgium should combine their respective strengths to expand cooperation in traditional fields, such as transportation, logistics and biopharmaceuticals, and explore new points for increased cooperation, such as green development. and the digital economy.
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said for his part that Belgium-China relations have a long history and are at the vanguard of European-Chinese relations in many aspects.
– “The Belgian side will continue to adhere to the “one China” policy and is ready to conduct sincere dialogue with the Chinese side, deepen mutual understanding and promote the continuous development of bilateral relations in political, economic, etc. .” – said De Croo, adding that the Belgian side opposes “disruption and disruption of supply chains”, welcomes Chinese companies to develop cooperation in Belgium and hopes to strengthen human and cultural exchanges with the Chinese side.
Geopolitical aspects in Alexander De Croo’s visit to China.
In his profile on X, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo published photos of the inauguration of the Belgian embassy in Beijing, writing: “The beginning of the new era of Belgian-Chinese engagement based on strong people-to-people ties, diplomatic partnerships and mutual prosperity.”
Furthermore, the Belgian Prime Minister writes in this post: “This is a timely opportunity for the two sides to engage, in a tense geopolitical and economic environment.” – In fact, according to Beijing’s official sources, at the bilateral meeting, President Jinping made it known that China and Belgium are two countries benefiting from economic globalization and have common interests in resisting protectionism and protecting free trade. .
Therefore, the Chinese side follows a stable and long-term policy towards the European Union and always considers it as a cooperation partner, hoping that the EU, as an important force in the multipolar world, will play a positive and constructive role.
“Both sides should cooperate more closely to promote an equitable world multipolarization and comprehensive economic globalization, jointly promoting world peace, stability and prosperity. China is willing to work with the EU to promote steady progress in bilateral relations in the new year, and hopes that Belgium, as the next EU chair country, will play a positive role in this direction,” – Xi Jinping is quoted by Beijing’s official sources.
“As the next president of the EU, Belgium is ready to play a positive role in the development of EU-China relations. I hope that my visit to China will help raise Belgium-China and EU-China relations to a new level,” said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo.
The Taiwan issue between China and the EU
The trip of the Belgian prime minister took place at a special geopolitical moment, exactly one day before the closely watched leadership elections in Taiwan, and it seems that Beijing expects from Europe not the same attitude as the USA and Great Britain.
During the meeting with the Chinese counterpart, the prime minister of the country, the next president of the EU, the Belgian Prime Minister De Croo, reiterated the bloc’s commitment to the “one China” principle.
In fact, after the election in Taiwan, the European Union’s statement uses careful diplomatic language as it congratulates the population on the election’s participation, without mentioning the winner of the election of the leader, where it is also underlined that “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are elements key to global security and development. The EU remains concerned about the growing tensions in the area and opposes any unilateral attempt to change the status quo.”
Meanwhile, a day after the election, Beijing strongly protested the heads of US and British diplomacy who sent congratulations to the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) candidates, reminding them of the indissoluble ties between Taipei and the People’s Republic.
Of course, these developments complicated the relations between the two powers of the world, the USA and China, and undoubtedly such a thing worries everyone because these two influence the entire world balance.
But China’s response without muscular military action is seen by many analysts as evidence that, despite winning a third term, the Democratic Progressive Party (PDP) has lost its overall majority in parliament and Beijing can thus feel reassured./CRI .CN
