His Excellency Li Keqiang, Dear Prime Ministers, Ladies and Gentlemen.

 

First of all I would like to express my gratitude to the Prime Minister of the People’s Republic of China for organizing this meeting. Thank you for your hospitality, for the organization of the summit, and thank you for your friendship.

 

Dear Hosts,

 

We have just arrived from Europe; therefore we cannot separate ourselves from the effects of the events taking place in Europe at this moment. Europe has been attacked and we must face the threat of further terrorist attacks. Life has stopped in Brussels. Many of us present today here are members of the European Union; the terrorist attacks therefore in Paris were also assaults on our countries. We must draw serious conclusions and face severe consequences. We have to admit that we Europeans are rich and weak – the most dangerous possible combination. Until this point we took security and safety for granted in Europe. This illusion is over. From now on, we must take actions in order to protect our security and the lives of our citizens. Security has become the number one point on the priority list of Europe. From our point of view this new situation gives further value to the role of China. The People’s Republic of China has a key role in safeguarding global peace and maintaining the necessary global balance in order to preserve peace. I would therefore respectfully like to ask the leaders of China to support the European efforts aimed at restoring our security and assist the European anti-terrorist efforts on all global political forums.

 

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, Prime Ministers,

 

Every parent is pleased when he sees his child growing. Today we are celebrating a new and important chapter in our common project, with cooperation meeting between the heads of Chinese provinces and Central and Eastern European leaders. Today we are taking our collaboration to the next level, with the creation of the medium-term agenda of our cooperation. We have had to take a long road to reach this point. I clearly remember the time we had our first preparatory meeting in Budapest, then the first summit meeting in Poland: the strongest country of Central and Eastern Europe. Thanks to Poland for their efforts. I clearly remember the echoes of our first meeting in Europe and in our own countries: they signaled many doubts. It was a widespread idea back then that the strengthening of China was temporary and that the financial crisis would undermine the development of the country. Yet today we see the opposite. China is on the path of permanent and long-term development, and we all know that it will soon become the strongest economy in the world. I can also remember the voices of fear that Central and Eastern Europe would be forced under Chinese influence and ultimately suffer losses in this relationship because of China’s enormous economic weight. The reality is that, although our weights are considerably different, our relations are based on respect and mutual interest. Hungary, for example, has received more than 3.5 billion dollars of Chinese investment. This does not repress us; on the contrary, it is mutually beneficial, and we would therefore like to increase Chinese investment in the future. It is clear to see that our relations have stood the test of time. As for the future, we are on the verge of immense opportunities.

 

Dear Prime Ministers,

 

There is a consensus in Europe that the economic growth of Central and Eastern Europe will be outstanding. Not by Chinese, but by European standards, of course. The economy of Europe would be suffering from stagnation without of the contribution of Central Europe. Our region continues to be the growth engine of the European Union. We should take advantage of this potential. But Europe alone is not enough to do this. We need other partners as well. Therefore, by taking part in financing the economic growth of Central Europe, and by trading with us, China also helps boost the growth of the entire European continent. Therefore our cooperation today serves the interest of the entire Europe and European Union as well.

 

Dear Prime Ministers,

 

The cooperation of China and Central and Eastern Europe is future-oriented. This is clearly reflected in our medium-term agenda. I welcome the fact that the agenda extends our cooperation to new areas. I consider the chapter on cooperation and connectivity a significant part of our agreement. We will create a safe and efficient connectivity network on land, on the sea and in the air between China and Europe. It is a brave proposal that besides of the existing financial instruments, the parties will examine and discuss the possibility of establishing a China-Central Europe financial company. We are also making key steps by supporting cooperation on the internet of things, big data and next generation internet. These are important fields. Nevertheless the success of our cooperation depends on whether the younger generations will follow our example. It is also our responsibility to make this happen. I therefore wholeheartedly welcome the point of our agreement regarding education, according to which, I quote: “The participants will organize the China-Central European countries’ education policy dialogue alternately in China and one of the Central and Eastern European countries on a regular basis, and support the functioning of the China-Central European countries’ higher education institutes consortium.” End of quote.

 

Dear Prime Ministers, Excellencies,

 

I believe that today we will do everything that can be done at this moment. Congratulations to all of us and thank you for your kind attention.

 

Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister