Romano Prodi: Europe and China Must Find Some Basic Progress of Common Interest
If the coronavirus does not come back, I am not so pessimistic about the future.
If the coronavirus does not come back, I am not so pessimistic about the future.
This year marks the 45th anniversary of China-EU diplomatic relations. The development of our relations over the past 45 years tells us that there is no fundamental conflict of interests between China and the EU.
If a dual leadership is to take form, it is crucial for the EU and China to find their own way of maintaining cooperation and dialogue, based on mutual recognition of universal values.
In an uncertain world, Europe’s commitment to multilateralism is good for stability and acknowledges China’s growing role. Obviously, not all European countries, whether member-states of the EU or not, agree, and sometimes they chart their own foreign policies.
The pandemic, despite some misunderstandings between China and the EU due to natural tensions in response to the virus that caught everyone by surprise, also showed solidarity that became evident when needed.
In times of a global calamity of such proportions, an escalation of the blame game will not yield favourable outcomes.
Cooperation is very important in difficult times, because no one can win on its own.
China and the EU cannot agree on everything but they are able to accommodate different interests and proceed together.
Cooperation is a must. It helps everybody in the very same way, because this is a global problem which starts at each single place and is of the same nature.
The EU and China must strengthen their partnership to overcome this crisis and provide the most vulnerable members of the international community with the support they need.
45 years of EU-China diplomatic relations have bonded the two sides into a comprehensive strategic partnership to jointly cope with global challenges and support each other.
These concrete areas of collaboration between the two countries constitute a heritage that will cement even more the traditional cultural and economic links between Italy and China. When the virus will be definitively eradicated, this empathic attitude will represent an extraordinary platform for enhancing friendship to the great benefit of the two nations.