TIANJIN: A healthy China is good for Europe, a former German chancellor said yesterday.

"A stable and successful China in terms of politics, culture, economy and civil society is in line with the interest of European countries China and European countries need mutual respect and a stronger mutual bond of trust," Gerhard Schroeder told the 8th Euro-China Forum in Tianjin yesterday.

Schroeder said that the deepening understanding between European countries and China should be further strengthened, and that European countries should meet China on an equal footing, instead of with confrontation or sanctions.

China's huge and promising home market is highly attractive for European companies. In return, China is in desperate need of technologies for energy efficiency and environmental protection.

China should get more involved in the international community, and exert more influence in the global economic and political arenas.

The current economic crisis cannot be solved by one or two nations. Instead, all major powers should join hands to ride out the tough times together, said Laurent Fabius, former prime minister of France.

"The ongoing financial crisis does not stand alone. It is accompanied by many other hard nuts concerning environmental protection, the fight against poverty and the fight against weapon proliferation. All these issues cannot be tackled by one or two single nations, but need joint efforts," Fabius added.

A rising China is an equal partner with European countries, which are undergoing the process of integration, said Lu Qiutian, former Chinese ambassador to Germany.

(China Daily 04/29/2009 page3)