BEIJING, Nov. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, Robert Fico, prime minister of the Slovak Republic, arrived in Beijing to start a six-day official visit to China. Before his departure, he stated that this is the "most important trip" he will make in 2024 and noted that "China is becoming a decisive global player." The delegation includes several ministers and 80 business representatives, highlighting Slovakia's urgent desire to upgrade cooperation with China on all fronts. Coming at a time when the European Commission announced the final ruling on the anti-subsidy investigation into China-made electric vehicles, Fico's visit to China highlights the positive aspects of China-Europe relations.
Slovakia was one of the first countries to recognize New China, and the two nations enjoy profound traditional friendship. Fico, who has served as prime minister four times, has always attached great importance to developing relations with China. In 2007, he visited China in his first year as prime minister.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of China-Slovakia diplomatic relations. Fico's visit continues this friendship and is expected to inject new momentum into China-Slovakia and China-Europe relations.
China is Slovakia's largest trading partner outside the EU, and Slovakia, as one of the first European countries to join the Belt and Road Initiative, enjoys a prime geographic location as an inland hub for three major transport corridors connecting Europe and China. With the automotive industry as a pillar of its economy - accounting for nearly half of Slovakia's total industrial sales - Slovakia is keen to adopt advanced technology to produce electric vehicles.
Additionally, Slovakia has substantial needs for improving and building transportation infrastructure. Therefore, fostering friendly relations and further deepening cooperation is a natural, mutually beneficial goal with strong intrinsic motivation for both sides.
Fico's visit to China is an epitome of the high-level exchanges and practical cooperation between China and the EU. Since the beginning of the year, European leaders and cabinet ministers have visited China in succession, from Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish President Andrzej Duda, to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Finnish President Alexander Stubb. Fico's visit continues this trend.
The frequent high-level interactions demonstrate an increasing demand for cooperation and the desire to build trust and dispel doubts through communication - this is the essence of China-Europe relations.
Since coming to power, Slovakia's new government has firmly promoted broad, mutually beneficial cooperation with non-Western countries, including China.
The concepts of equality, mutual benefit, and win-win cooperation advocated by China have resonated within Europe, which has allowed China and Slovakia to establish mutual trust on a deeper level.
In recent years, many Central and Eastern European Countries have led the EU in levels of cooperation with China, with countries like Hungary and Slovakia emerging as key forces in advocating for independent EU diplomacy and economic policy. This is not a coincidence.
Central and Eastern Europe is the connecting zone between the dynamic East Asian economic circle and the developed Western European economies, and it is a key region integrating multiple roles such as hub and transit area. Today, the number of China-Europe freight trains passing through Slovakia continues to grow, symbolizing the fruitful cooperation between China and Slovakia and injecting impetus into the ever-closer China-EU relations.
During this visit, Fico is scheduled to tour China's lithium battery manufacturer Gotion High-tech Co, which plans to build an EV battery factory in collaboration with local manufacturers in Slovakia.
As a traditional assembly center for European brands like Volkswagen and BMW, Slovakia's open cooperation with Chinese companies reflects the aspect of European nations to uphold market principles and embrace market competition.
With China-Slovakia economic, trade, and people exchanges entering the fast lane, it is expected that the potential and advantages of China-CEE cooperation will be further explored.
Prime Minister Fico's visit will provide references for China and Europe to seek the greatest common denominator for win-win cooperation.
China and Europe share a broad foundation and demand for cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, and global governance, where consensus outweighs differences and collaboration exceeds competition.
Against a backdrop of economic globalization encountering headwinds and rising international instability, China and Europe should strengthen communication and cooperation to jointly address global challenges.