Remarks by Ambassador ZHANG Ming At the Policy Dialogue "the EU-China Strategic Partnership 15 Years on-What Direction for the Next 15 Years?"

祖雷格主任，

维冈总司长，

女士们、先生们：

　　非常感谢欧洲政策中心组织这次吹风会，很高兴与大家就中欧关系交换意见。

Chief Executive Fabian Zuleeg, 

Mr. Gunnar Wiegand,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the outset, I would like to thank EPC for organizing this event and inviting me to speak on this important topic.

　　中欧全面战略伙伴关系已走过15年历程，双方政治互信不断深化、经贸联系日益密切、人员交流持续频密。15年前，中欧双边贸易额为1252亿美元。今年1至8月已达4450亿美元，全年可望比15年前翻两番还多。15年前，双边人员往来约为300万人次，去年突破700万人次。每周有600个航班往返于中欧两地。这些数据生动反映了中欧之间的紧密联系。

As Ambassador, I am proud to see how much has been achieved since China and the EU established the comprehensive strategic partnership 15 years ago. Figures are convincing.

--Bilateral trade was 125.2 billion US dollars 15 years ago, while just in the first eight months of this year, trade already reached 445 billion dollars. At the end of this year, we could expect an amount more than four times that of 15 years ago.

--In the past 15 years, mutual visits increased from 3 million to over 7 million. 600 flights travel between China and the EU every week.

Numbers are lifeless, but they give a lively expression to the close ties between China and the EU.

　　经常有人问：何为“全面战略伙伴关系”？所谓“全面”，是指双方关系的内涵不限于传统的经贸联系，还涵盖外交、安全、人文、科技、环保、全球治理等各领域。中欧已建立近80个对话交流磋商机制，形成全方位、宽领域、多层次的有效联系。

　　所谓“战略”，是指双方超越历史、文化、价值观和政治制度的差异，着力构建具有全局性、长期性和稳定性的合作关系。面对纷繁复杂的国际形势，就重大战略性问题进行深入有效沟通，不断加强协调、深化互信，实现良性互动。

Some are asking what is the definition of a comprehensive strategic partnership. "Comprehensive" means that our cooperation is not just about trade, but about a broad range of areas, like foreign policy, security, culture, science and technology, global governance, to name just a few. We have nearly 80 dialogue mechanisms at different levels and in different fields.

"Strategic" means that we embrace a big-picture and long-term thinking for cooperation, going beyond our differences in history, cultures, development modes and political system. In a time of uncertainties, strategic partners are poised to communicate on major issues with a sense of trust, and enhance coordination to add a sense of certainty.