Diplomatic World_nummer 57

the China-Europe cargo railway. So far there have been
more than 6.300 trains from 33 Chinese cities, which have
reached 36 cities in 13 European countries, including
1.000 trains from Chengdu to Lodz, Poland. But they
also experienced some problems, such as high outbound
transport costs, high operating expenditures, low bargaining
power of the stakeholders and high subsidies. Further
expansion will be subject to local dynamics, and further
opening up of the BRI within a long-term perspective.
European-Asian cooperation
in higher education
Professor Maria Stoicheva, Jean Monnet Chair and Vice
Rector for International Cooperation of Sofia University,
presented a new project called EURASIA: European
Studies Revitalized Across Asian Universities, co-funded by
the EU’s Erasmus+ Programme. The project, coordinated
by Sofia University, includes five European, two Chinese
and two Indian universities. The main objectives are to
contribute to capacity building in the field of EU studies, to
strengthen the internationalization of education, to improve
competences and skills in the partner institutes for higher
education, to encourage intercultural communication, and
to provide faculty and young researchers with innovative
opportunities for training, mobility and learning exchanges.
Everyone in the panel agreed that educational cooperation
should be promoted as a very important component of EU-
China and CEEC-China relations.
countries. Bulgaria-China trade increased 29.8% in 2017,
but the total trade only represented a combined value of
US $2.13 billion. Professor Xinning Song stated that EU-
China relations are entering a new era. China’s strategy of
seeking a stable and balanced power in its relationships,
and of positioning China as a safeguard for global peace,
a contributor to the world economy, a participant in
global governance and a maintainer of international order,
provides new opportunities to deepen the EU-China
partnership.
BULGARIA AS A BRIDGE BETWEEN THE
WESTERN BALKANS AND THE EU –
SESSION IN THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
The underlying themes of the discussion at the Bulgarian
National Assembly were economic diplomacy and political
economy. “Economic diplomacy is the field of diplomacy,
whether or not in partnership with non-state actors, aiming
at maintaining and creating domestic economic prosperity
by means of policies and actions in relation to foreign
countries,’ explained Gunter Gaublomme, Director of
the Brussels Diplomatic Academy. The strength of this
definition is that it refers to what economic diplomacy really
is, namely securing a nation’s domestic economic prosperity,
and that this purpose is realized not only through the
commonly known instruments, such as trade fairs, economic
missions, … but is also taken care of by the legislature and
the executive (i.e. government and diplomats).
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Discussion and conclusions
The European and Chinese participants had great
expectations about the further evolution of EU-China and
CEEC-China relationships. Professor Antonya Tsankova
from the Chinese Studies Department of Sofia University
appreciated the achievements of the 16+1 cooperation and
the BRI over the last five years. At a recent meeting, leaders
from Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and Serbia confirmed
their willingness to work together in support of the 16+1
and the BRI initiatives. Increased efforts are needed to find
new, concrete formulae for cooperation. Although CEEC-
China cooperation has progressed, trade and investment
between the CEEC and China are still limited. In 2017, the
trade volume was US $67.98 billion, an increase of 11.6%,
but this is still only 1.65% of China’s total foreign trade,
and 9% of China’s trade with Europe. The CEEC is still
not the main destination of China’s FDI in Europe. Some
90% of China’s FDI is still with the traditional developed
Rumen Gechev, Bulgarian parliamentarian, remarked that
sometimes the preliminary studies on potential economic
and financial impacts of laws adopted by the parliament are
inadequate, resulting in insufficiently refined laws that often
have to be modified and brought into line with EU directives
afterwards. This creates a perception in the international
community of instability which is harmful for business and
investments. He welcomed regular meetings with mixed
delegations such as the CIDIC mission.
Gunter Gaublomme proposed to create a Balkan Chair in
the Brussels Diplomatic Academy. He felt that diverging
views can lead Eastern and Western Europe to grow apart:
“I am convinced that a lack of mutual understanding
lies at the basis of this threat to European construction.”
The Chair would aim to bring together the positions of
both sides, from the point of view of society, business,
academia and governments, so that enhanced awareness
and understanding would facilitate European cooperation.