Year of Europe for China's diplomacy

Ursula Von der Leyen formally took over as president of the European Commission on Dec 1.Others who took charge of their office on the same day include 26 commissioners, among them High Representative of the European Union Josep Borrell Fontelles and European Commissioner for Trade Phil Hogan. Von der Leyen's term marks a new start for both the EU and China-EU ties. And given the EC's priorities now, China and the EU can expect to see deeper cooperation in the days to come.

Von der Leyen takes charge at a time when populism is on the rise and dramatic changes are taking place in European politics. In the election to the 2019 European Parliament, the two largest pan-European party groups, the European People's Party and Party of European Socialists, lost their combined majority for the first time since 1979. Traditional European political powers such as Germany and France, however, continue to enjoy an influential presence in EU institutions; Von der Leyen is German and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde French.

The new EU team led by Von der Leyen intends to play a more active role in upholding European interests and values by consolidating the multilateral order. That means the EU needs a reliable partner like China－which has similar aspirations and has been making efforts to ensure the international system operates well.

In fact, China and the EU have many common interests, such as addressing climate change, saving the Iran nuclear deal and pushing for World Trade Organization reform. To begin with they can focus on three areas.

First, China and the EU can improve their economic ties. The EU has been China's largest trade partner since 2004; the EU-China trade volume reached 604.7 billion euros ($670 billion) in 2018. China's foreign direct investment in the EU has touched $90.73 billion, which is 7.26 times what it was in 2010. And between 1987 and 2017, China attracted $118.6 billion in FDI from the EU. Although two-way trade and economic ties have progressed remarkably well, both sides are encountering uncertainties, especially because of the rise of protectionism and unilateralism in certain countries. There is thus a greater need to strengthen Sino-EU economic ties.

China will open its doors wider to the world, including European countries. The EU is also keen on finalizing negotiations for an investment agreement with China by 2020, proof the EU wants to embrace the huge opportunities offered by the Chinese market. The Geographic Indication agreement between China and the EU during French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to China last month was a good start for better China-EU bilateral economic relations.

Second, China and the EU are capable of doing more to combat climate change, which is a priority for the EC and China both. China is committed to upholding the Paris Agreement and practicing low-carbon and sustainable development.

As Macron said, cooperation between Europe and China on reducing emissions will be "decisive", especially because both sides have vowed to build more renewable energy infrastructure, such as high-voltage transmission lines ,and increase production of electric vehicles. Besides, China and European countries such as France are also focusing on biodiversity. The UN Convention on Biological Diversity in China in October 2020 will provide greater impetus for environmental cooperation between China and the EU.

Third, 5G is an important area of China-EU cooperation. An EU report seeks to analyze the huge economic potential 5G offers while also raising some safety concerns. But EU member countries do not want to sacrifice the opportunity of cooperating with Chinese high-tech companies just because the US claims of security concerns.

After all, Chinese high-tech companies will provide secure economical and highly efficient solutions to EU states. China will also be open to the EU and its member states solving related problems.

Beijing and Brussels both attach great importance to Sino-EU ties. Premier Li Keqiang spoke with Von der Leyen on the phone on Dec 1, hours after she formally took office. For Chinese diplomacy, 2020 is going to be "the year of Europe".Leaders from both sides will hold several important meetings, including the China-EU summit, China-Central and Eastern European Countries"17+1" summit.

Thanks to the two sides increasing shared interests and strong political consensus, China-EU ties are likely to enter a new era.

The author is an assistant research fellow at the Institute of European Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.