Documentation Brochure - Hamburg Summit

Ways to solve Upcoming ProblemsNikolaus W. Schües, Conference Chairman, concludes the conferenceIn times of globalisation proceeding atfull speed, a good and friendly relationshipbetween China and Europe is ofutmost importance for both sides. Inorder to build up such a strategic partnership,it is imperative to respect eachother’s traditions and feelings. The successof the Olympic Games is a kind of“crown” for the work that had been doneup to now – thanks to the significantimprovements made, China is now playinga decisive role in the world economy.When we started to plan this conferenceright after the end of the lastHamburg Summit in 2006, our aim wasto strengthen European and internationalattendance. Looking back we candefinitely say that we reached our goal.But the path to this success has notalways been an easy one. Almost exactlyone year ago, German-Chinese relationswere interrupted abruptly. Thepolitical resentments turned into an iceage which lasted almost half a year. Thisperiod gave us many sleepless nights.But even in these difficult times, weat the Hamburg Chamber of Commercealways believed in the strength of dialogue.After a successful conference Iam happy and proud that the third“Hamburg Summit: China meetsEurope” was the occasion for the firstvisit to Europe by a member of theChinese government after the politicalturbulences. Thus, our Hamburg Summitwas also an important milestone on theway to improving Sino–European relations.What did we learn from this year’sconference? Let me point out the majorresults:First: China is on its way to assumingglobal responsibility, and the EuropeanUnion should welcome and support thisdevelopment. In turn we should all doour utmost to promote multilateralcooperation leading to a fair, just, andrule-based international system.Second: The dramatic challenges ofclimate change and environmental pollutionin China can only be dealt with inthe form of a joint Sino-European initiative.We have discussed China’s way ofcombating the challenges and Europeanways of supporting these approaches. Afair dialogue on an eye-to-eye level isnecessary to find solutions suitable forall of us.Third: For the time being, there isunfortunately no purely European way ofdoing business with China and of jointlyrepresenting our interests vis-à-vis thegovernment in Beijing. National interestsare still predominant. This certainly hasto change. How can we be seen as aUnion if we do not behave as one?Fourth: China is definitely a must formost European companies. For somefirms facing growing competition fromChina, it is a question of survival toarrange partnerships with Chinese firms.The process of opening up has newopportunities in store. They should notbe missed!Fifth: The European Union shouldsupport the Chinese government in itsendeavours to reform the economy andestablish a stable society. All of thespeakers and panellists at the HamburgSummit unanimously pointed out thatthere is an enormous need for reforms inthe People’s Republic.So, indeed, there are still “challengesahead”. But as long as we continue fosteringthe dialogue, I am confident thatwe will always find ways to solveupcoming problems. “This third timemarks the beginning of a tradition”,Helmut Schmidt said at the beginning ofthis Hamburg Summit. And he addedthat “I sincerely hope that the Chineseand European guests will contributetowards the future of this tradition”. Ican assure you now that we willcontinue this tradition, and the fourth“Hamburg Summit: China meets Europe”will be hosted in autumn 2010.