Brussels, 10/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 10 June, China's State Councillor Yang Jiechi said that China had made tremendous progress on human rights.
“China is a country that follows the rule of law. We have made tremendous progress in the area of human rights”, Yang said at the end of the sixth high level strategic dialogue between the EU and China that was held in Brussels on Friday. He added that Beijing was ready to hold a dialogue with the EU on the rule of law and human rights “on an equal and mutually respectful basis”.
High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini stated that “the rule of law and human rights were at the very heart of [the] bilateral relations” between the EU and China. Although the figures on the death penalty are secret, China is one of the countries that uses capital punishment most in the world. The EU holds an annual dialogue with China on human rights (the last being in November) and regularly criticises China's attacks on human rights defenders.
Mogherini confirmed that the EU was “ready” to step up its cooperation with China in the fight against terrorism and that both parties would strengthen their cooperation on the Middle East. “Our close collaboration on the Iranian nuclear agreement is a positive example for doing more together on this”, she said.
Mogherini and Yang also discussed cooperation in the areas of diplomacy, investment, and connectivity, as well as the Chinese presidency of the G20.
Their meeting in Brussels furthermore enabled preparation of the EU-China summit, which could take place on 12-13 July just before the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) - but the dates have not yet been confirmed, an EU source told EUROPE.
According to Yang, the summit will enable the bilateral agenda to be deepened in many areas - such as digital cooperation, trade, investment, infrastructure, mobility and legal affairs. It will also accelerate the negotiations for an investment agreement and provide additional momentum for political and security cooperation, innovation and research. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)