Premier Wen Jiabao and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed on
Thursday to further promote cooperation between China and
Germany.
The agreement was reached during Wen's talks with Merkel after
he arrived in Berlin on Thursday morning.
Trade is a key issue which Wen and Merkel touched on in their
talks. China is satisfied with the "strong growth momentum" in
trade, Wen said.
Germany has remained the largest European trade partner of China
for more than three decades and it is also one of the largest
foreign investors in China and one of Europe's key technology
transferrers to China.
The development of the Sino-German partnership with global
responsibility is in the interest of the two countries and
conducive to world peace, stability and development, Wen said.
To further Sino-German cooperation, Wen proposed to improve
meeting mechanism between the two governments and parliaments and
well run the first round of strategic dialogue, which was agreed
upon during Merkel's May visit to China.
Wen also suggested the two countries deepen economic and trade
cooperation and provide support and facilitation for small- and
medium-sized enterprises.
Merkel said the Germany-China ties are important and the German
side is satisfied with the fruitful cooperation.
Wen also briefed Merkel on China's policy on intellectual
property rights protection, high-tech development and innovation by
enterprises.
On China-EU ties, Wen said he hopes Germany, the rotating
presidency of European Union and Group 8, will make contribution to
the growth of Sino-Europe relations and endeavor to resolve global
and regional issues.
Wen and Merkel also exchanged views on international issues.
Merkel expressed appreciation of China's decision to send more
personnel to join UN peacekeeping forces to Lebanon.
They agreed that the international community should jointly
safeguard international non-proliferation regime and addressed the
Iranian nuclear issue with flexible methods.
Germany is the third-leg of Wen's four-nation tour.
Wen was scheduled to visit Tajikistan and attend the fifth Prime
Ministers' Meeting of the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization, due to be held in Tajikistan's capital of
Dushanbe.
Wen toured Germany after concluding his visit to Finland and
Britain.
(Xinhua News Agency September 15, 2006)
