Xi and Gauck promote new opportunities

Chinese and German presidents meet in Beijing to discuss culture, education and sports exchanges

President Xi Jinping called for more efforts to boost mutual respect and deepen political trust between China and Germany as he met with his German counterpart on March 21.

The two countries should work together to support the Belt and Road Initiative and jointly explore the international market, Xi said.

He made the marks while meeting in Beijing with German President Joachim Gauck, who is on his first visit to China. Gauck was also scheduled to visit Shanghai and Xi'an.

The two countries have agreed to boost culture, education, media, youth and sports exchanges.

Both leaders attended the opening ceremony of the China-Germany Year of Student and Youth Exchanges.

Gauck spoke highly of China's role in international affairs.

Ma Canrong, former Chinese ambassador to Germany, says Gauck's visit reflects the high frequency of high-level political exchanges between the two countries.

"While continuing cooperation in traditional areas such as trade and manufacturing, China and Germany are also exploring new fields for cooperation, such as on the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank," Ma says.

The initiative includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. It was proposed by Xi in 2013 and aims to boost trade and connectivity along the ancient trade routes spanning Asia, Europe and Africa.

"These initiatives bring new opportunities for Sino-German cooperation", Ma says, adding that the two countries can cooperate in infrastructure construction in eastern European countries.

Li Lezeng, an expert on German studies at Tongji University in Shanghai, says that amid a global economic slowdown, China and Germany have both emphasized technical innovation and green development.

"China can learn from Germany's experience in policymaking and technical innovation concerning environmental protection while developing the economy," Li says.

Sino-German relations have deepened recently, with 110 cooperative projects currently being implemented, according to China's Foreign Ministry.

Germany is also the largest nonregional shareholder of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which aims to fund infrastructure and investment in the region.

Contact the writers through anbaijie@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 03/25/2016 page15)