Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-05-22-Speech-2-507-000"
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"en.20120522.21.2-507-000"2
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"Mr President, this was indeed a very important presentation that Ms de Sarnez has given us and I know also that four Parliament committees have contributed to this important work – important because China is a very topical issue and essential for our foreign trade interests. Parliament’s views on these links are obviously a crucial part of our platform in the dialogue with China.
I can agree with many of the specific findings in the report. China is increasingly driving global growth at a difficult time for the international economy, and it is our fastest growing export market. But, at the same time, the list of issues we need to address with China grows longer, and the report is right in suggesting that there is a general feeling in Europe that economic openness in China is not improving enough. This highlights some of our concerns with China. Let me go through some of these.
It is essential for EU interests to have improved intellectual property rights’ enforcement in China. European companies excel in cutting-edge technologies and this is part of our competitive advantage. It is a fact that IPR infringements undermine not only European investment and engagement in China but just as much China’s ambition to develop its economy. We should therefore redouble our efforts on IPR and we will use this report as a useful guide in addressing this with China.
I also agree with the report that we should aim for an ambitious and balanced investment agreement with China. Important sectors in China remain restricted for foreign investment and I believe that Europe’s open investment regime remains our strongest argument for others to grant us similar access. At the EU-China summit in February, we agreed to move towards bilateral investment negotiations. Market access in China will be part of this, as will the way our investments are treated in China.
The report also states that we need to strengthen transparency regarding foreign direct investment in Europe. I agree with this in principle, but also we need to be careful not to create new investment barriers at a time when Europe needs to remain attractive to maintain growth and jobs.
The report’s view on access to the public procurement market in China underlines why the Commission is pushing for China to accede to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement. Limited and unbalanced access to many procurement markets globally is also why the Commission has proposed an external procurement instrument which aims at ensuring better reciprocity in the way our companies can get access to foreign markets, compared with the open access they enjoy in the EU. With such an instrument, we can have a better platform for addressing procurement concerns with China.
As the report rightly notes, it is crucial for European businesses that we vigilantly defend our interests whenever trade rules are not respected. We are doing this with anti-dumping and anti-subsidy instruments and we have resorted to the WTO when that was necessary, for example, to address restrictions on access to raw materials and rare earths. On the question of whether China can obtain market economy status, I can only insist that this depends mainly on China itself, as it has to meet a number of objective criteria.
Finally, I think it is important that the report also points to a path forward. Even if our long-term vision for a strategic partnership with China can come under pressure from day-to-day issues, it is important that we keep in mind the vast potential for European businesses in China, and this raises the question of how we in Europe engage in China and with China. It is essential that the Commission, Parliament, the Member States, and the EU actors pass a coherent message to our respective Chinese counterparts. Only in this way will the EU be able to deal effectively with the different aspects of our trade relations with China and only in this way will we progress towards a stronger, deeper, and more balanced relationship with maximum mutual benefits for both sides."@en1
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