China regards its cooperation with Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as a vital part of China-Europe ties rather than a new mechanism independent from the latter, a Chinese official with the
Ministry of Commerce said during a press conference on Friday, the evening before Chinese President
Xi Jinping's set off on his State visits to Serbia and Poland.
The cooperation, a new mechanism to develop ties between China and Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs), also aims to deepen China-Europe ties, stressed Zhou Xiaoyan, director-general of European affairs at the Ministry of Commerce, adding that such cooperation will also promote balanced European development.
"China-CEE cooperation will boost China-Europe collaboration rather than bring negative effects," she said.
China has stressed that cooperation with EU members will be carried out within the framework of the EU, while also stressing that cooperation with non-EU members can also benefit European integration. To fulfill its commitment, China invited EU representatives to attend successive meetings between Chinese and CEE heads of State. Additionally, the EU-China 2020 Strategic Agenda for Cooperation, a guideline on China-EU cooperation, was issued as part of official documents after the meetings.
So far, more European countries, as well as other countries around the globe, have realized that China-CEE cooperation can benefit balanced European integration by helping narrow the gap between Eastern and Western Europe.
After the 3rd Meeting of Heads of Government of China and Central and Eastern European Countries in Belgrade in 2014, the EU ambassador to China stressed that, "Appropriate CEE-China cooperation can generate added value," adding that EU members cooperation with China should continue to be transparent.
"China's interest in Europe has grown significantly in recent years," Aleksandra Joksimovic, a Serbian foreign policy expert, was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
"The EU does not mind Serbia's cooperation (with China) as it is also looking for common interests with China in the economic sphere," he added.