Scharping: China Reliable Partner of EuropeEurope considers China as its reliable cooperator, for China is an important Asian country and a major significant power in the world.Visiting German Minister of Defense, Rudolf Scharping said this in an interview with Xinhua before he concluded his four-day tour of China and left for India Wednesday, February 21. Scharping is the first German defense minister to visit China since the two countries forged diplomatic ties in 1972. As soon as Scharping arrived here on February 18, he talked with Chinese President Jiang Zemin, party senior official Wei Jianxing, military senior officers Zhang Wannian and Fu Quanyou. Also as vice-chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, and president of the Party of European Socialists, Scharping said his meetings with Chinese leaders as "constructive" and "fruitful. " He said the visit promotes bilateral relations, cements links between China and the European Union, and furthers the contacts between the two ruling parties of the Communist Party of China and the Social Democratic Party of Germany. Germany puts forward comprehensive diplomacy and security policy and conducts dialogues with the countries of the world, he said. "Germany and China have maintained momentum for dialogue and contact since German Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder visited He expressed his appreciation for China's participation in international affairs, and safeguarding global and regional peace and stability. He referred to China's upcoming entry into the World Trade Organization, signing the convention on the prohibition of the development, production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons and on their destruction (CWC) and Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and joining in the international peacekeeping operations. He labeled these activities as "effective." Scharping said that Germany and China have common interests on security, and for the issues of disarmament, arms control, non- proliferation and National Missile Defense system, he said that the relevant parties have enough time to conduct dialogue in all fields. "The more talks they have, the better results they will get," he said. He spoke highly of the military relations between China and Germany, and voiced his hope to further bilateral cooperation in the fields of personnel training and medical treatment. Scharping loves racing bicycle, and he is also a tennis and football fan. He visited China 14 years ago when he was president of Social Democratic Party of Rheinland-Pfalz of Germany. He said he was surprised by the great changes in China as the result of the economic growth, and expressed his willingness to visit China again. |
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