For more analysis, we're pleased to be joined by Dr. Xin Hua, Director of Center for European Union Studies at Shanghai International Studies University. Welcome.
During president Xi's talk with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Xi said co-operation between China and Germany was not a risk but a guarantee for stable ties and an opportunity for the future. He also identified key areas for cooperation such as automobiles, green transformation, and digitalization. How can both nations synergize their efforts in these areas to achieve mutual success?
Xin Hua: First, businesses and social partners of both China and Germany shall take an effort to build a more efficient and complex system of interest representation in either side to express their concerns and requests. In consideration of very fluid situations in world economy and geopolitics, it is evitable that businesses and entrepreneurs of both sides are more heavily pressed than before to deal with more severe challenges and have to tackle bigger unpredictability. Therefore, more efficient contacts between businesses, civil society, and political leadership shall be built within and between China and Germany. In other words, it is imperative to let Chinese businessmen heard by Germany’s political leadership and let German investors and social partners heard by Chinese political leadership. Second, there shall be more coordination between the policy-makers of China, Germany, and the European Union so that a more stable and steady mechanism could be created for a sustainable development of China-Europe bilateral economic relations. It is inevitable that there are always some trade frictions occurring between China and the Europe, while the European Union is on the front of these frictions, if a triangular coordination between China, Germany, and the European Union can be created, the trade and investment between China and the Europe would be more stable and sustainable.
Scholz's visit comes amid accusations of overcapacity in China, what's your take on these claims? What unique contributions do you believe Chinese productions offer to the world?
Xin Hua: It is natural and inevitable that Chinese and German politicians and businesses may have different viewpoints on this issue. On the other hand, it needs to be pointed out that China and Germany are highly entangled with each other in manufacturing industries. We need each other. We offer each other indispensable resources and productive factors for a joint economic growth. Also, we offer cheaper goods with good quality to the Europe, which bring substantial benefits to European consumers. It is natural and unavoidable that some competitions between Chinese and European domestic businesses occur in pace with the development of China-Europe economic and trade relations. Nevertheless, is it not true that competition is a natural outcome of the market economy? Why do our German friends not regard their own automotive production as overcapacity? Our German friends may not need to worry about the natural development of commercial competitions between us. I’m confident that we have the wisdom to manage this issue through continuous dialogue and negotiations.
Chinese manufactured products contribute to the decarbonizing momentum in the world economy.It offers the global south an alternative to the western products not only in the fields of traditional industrial goods, but also in the sectors related to the emerging technologies. Chinese ICT products satisfy the African demands for establishing their own telecommunications networks. And Chinese export and investment in high-speed railways and transport facilities have largely upgraded the transport conditions in Africa and some Southeast Asian countries. Based on Belt and Road Initiative, our products and investment in Central Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa helped to build, upgrade, and expand the infrastructures in these regions. Also, our investments help to create a momentum that drives forward the economic growth and social progress of the countries in these regions in a sustainable way.
