China-CEECs ties an exemplar of transregional cooperation, say businesses

BEIJING -- Ahead of the Summit of China and Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs), experts and businesses have voiced hope for stronger bilateral ties, saying China-CEEC cooperation has been an exemplar of transregional cooperation. 

In a small town in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Stanari Thermal Power Plant has directly created hundreds of jobs. It is the first China-built power plant in Europe and "very very green," Aleksandar Milic, the plant's technical director, told Xinhua. 

"Running the plant of this scale means maintaining connection with Chinese companies. We have been satisfied with our cooperation so far," Milic said. "We will keep the cooperation better in the future because it is the key to keeping the power plant stable, safe and helpful." 

Ivana Antunovic, senior editor of state-owned Croatian Radiotelevision, said cooperation between Europe and China is now needed more than ever. 

Considering the Port of Rijeka as a center of more intensive cooperation between the two countries, Antunovic said, "Europe ... should use Chinese builders more, especially after the excellent experience in the construction of the Peljesac Bridge."

"In the future, greater cooperation in the field of science and research should be achieved, and the experience of China regarding the production of COVID-19 vaccines should be used," Antunovic added. 

Latvia's ABC Timber has established steady ties with China. "We have found quite a few good business partners in China. We are very happy to work with them," the company's CEO Valts Strazdins said. "In recent years China has become one of Latvia's largest export partners, for which we are thankful." 

Expressing the hope that the summit will take the partnership further, Strazdins said, "This is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has left most European economies struggling, whereas China continues to show sustained growth." 

For Airbus, it values its strong partnership with China and is willing to support the modernization of China's industry by further strengthening cooperation with China's supply chain and business partners, the aerospace giant's CEO Guillaume Faury told Xinhua. 

Airbus is convinced that the China-EU investment agreement, the completion of whose negotiations was announced at the end of 2020, and strong momentum of China's economy will lay a solid foundation for the global recovery and create opportunities for cooperation, Faury said.