Chinese president to visit Brussels

Rivellini, who chairs the European Parliament’s influential delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China, said Xi Jinping had “most influenced the international context” in the past 12 months.

The Chinese premier is in Brussels on Monday (31 March) as part of a tour of Europe which also takes in the Netherlands, Germany and France.

It is not a full-blown summit but will instead feature a number of meetings with Commission President José Manuel Barroso and European Council President Hermann Van Rompuy.

Ahead of the trip, Rivellini, an Italian deputy, said: “The modern dynamic China contrasts with the lack of leadership in the European Union and the American political paralysis.”

He said Xi Jinping’s “commitment to reforms and his attempt to modernize the 'Asian Giant' is granting him much needed international and domestic support”.

Rivellini, the delegation head since September 2009, added: “In next years of his leadership, I do expect Xi Jinping to complete the way he began in his first year of government: market oriented reforms and a vigorous anti-corruption campaign.”

In a wide-ranging interview ahead of the presidential visit to Europe, the Napoli-born MEP also addressed China's efforts to fight corruption and tackle social injustice.

“We must acknowledge China's increasing efforts to fight internal corruption and the fact that the government has pushed its fight against corruption high on his agenda. Exemplary are the cases of Bo Xilai as well as the dismissal of the former railway minister Liu Zhijun.”

However, he cautioned: “Despite government efforts, especially in the unlawful conduct relating to payments abroad, there are still high levels of corruption and illegal practices in local public administrations.”

The 59-year-old added: “It is a very interesting time for China. Its decades-long transition from a rural economy to a fully developed and forward-looking urban society calls for tough vigilance by the government to prevent corrupt and unlawful individuals from halting the development and fostering of a country worthy to be among the leaders worldwide. I'm confident that, in the long run, China will be able to implement efficient policies aimed at limiting internal corruption and weakening social injustice.”

On current tensions between China and Japan he said: “There is no denying that the geopolitical confrontations going on between China and the re-born imperial Japanese spirit have suffered a sharp and worrying acceleration especially within recent weeks.”

He predicts that in addition to the “open dispute” regarding sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands, “new territorial disputes on the African continent and a succession of diplomatic provocations are likely to worsen the situation at any moment.” The deputy believes the support of the international community is “important”, saying the United States “plays a strategic role” and current “anxieties” should not divert attention from the “peaceful resolution of problems and Asian conflicts which could easily transform into an international war.”

Turning to EU-China relations, Rivellini, an MEP since 2009, commented, “After decades of mutual mistrust, mainly due to disagreements on trade, the relationship between the two superpowers are slowly consolidating.

“Bilateral export figures show how EU-China economic relations are evolved in a very positive way, while cooperation at the political level is improving with a series of more frequent bilateral meetings.”

“Nevertheless,” he added, “I must highlight the still negative data on European investment in China: it represents only 2% of the total European investment abroad. And the situation from the point of view of investment in Europe by China is even more disheartening. If the Asian nation reserve to the United States is as much as 20% of the total investment, the share directed towards Europe is - incredibly - less than 1% of the total.”

This shows that agreements between the EU and China are “more than ever essential” for the growth and prosperity of both parties. He argued: “In a context of wobbly economic recovery, Europe needs more than ever to attract foreign investment that could jump-start growth and employment. It is time for Europe to know a new entrepreneurial Chinese class, one which is ready to invest in the area, create jobs and development. On the other hand, China also needs Europe more than ever. Ensuring a permanent presence of European investment means skills, knowledge, technologies and know-how that are the key to sustainable and long-term development. European companies should feel at home in China, without fear of being hindered by the Chinese government.”

The Forza Italia politician urged the Chinese government to continue on the way to the economic market reform: “I do believe Chinese domestic policy can help get the most out of the EU-China relationship by a true re-balancing of its economy in favour of competitive foreign investment and stronger domestic consumption.

“Allowing more European competition and expertise into China’s domestic market, particularly in the services sector, would boost its economic reforms by increasing the weight of technologies, know-how and skills that China needs.”

He added: “This is what I expect for the next Chinese national congress: a serious commitment in the direction of a bigger private sector and a real competitive market.”

Rivellini, a member of the centre right European People’s Party, said the Chinese President's visit to Europe at the end of March “will surely provide a great chance to discuss unsolved questions and proceed on the way to co-operation between the two political realities.”

He said: “During these five years spent as MEP in charge of the delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China, I have been pleasantly surprised by the growing political and economical cooperation in EU-China relations, despite the crisis and the next wobbly global recovery. I definitively hope Xi Jinping's meetings with the EU authorities will confirm the necessary political and, particularly economic, collaboration between EU and China. Europe must work towards a more co-operative common strategy on China, and China could do more to open up its domestic market to competition from Europe."