China, EU reach wide-ranging agreements

European Council President Donald Tusk (L), Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (C) and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker hold a joint news conference during a EU-China summit at the EU Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, June 29, 2015. [Photo provided for chinadaily.com.cn]

BRUSSELS - China and the European Union (EU) on Monday reached a wide range of agreements on climate change, infrastructure investment and people-to-people exchanges.

China and the EU issued a joint statement and a statement on climate change after visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang co-chaired the 17th China-EU leaders' meeting with President of the European Council Donald Tusk and President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker here.

The two sides also signed several cooperation documents on science and technology, intellectual property, regional policies, and customs.

China and the EU decided to integrate China's "Belt and Road" initiatives with the Investment Plan for Europe and establish a China-EU joint investment fund.

The "Belt and Road" initiatives were proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 with the aim to revive the ancient trade route between Asia and Europe. The Investment Plan for Europe is a 315-billion-euro (352-billion-US-dollar) plan initiated by Juncker to resuscitate Europe's economy.

The two sides agreed to establish an interconnectivity platform and decided to reach a comprehensive investment deal as soon as possible.

They also promised to deepen practical cooperation in the uphill battle against climate change on the basis of their statement on the issue.