China hopes Belgium can play positive role on EU's fulfillment of WTO obligations: Li

China hopes Belgium could play a positive role to prompt the European Union (EU) to fulfill its obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) system, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said during a meeting with Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel hold talks and discuss various topics including bilateral ties, economic and trade cooperation as well as international affairs and regional issues of common concern, in Brussels, Belgium, on Friday, June 2, 2017. [Photo: gov.cn]

The EU needs to fulfill its obligations under Article 15 of the protocol on China's accession to the WTO so as to pave the way to a healthy and stable development of China-EU relations, Li said at the meeting on Friday.

According to Article 15, WTO members should have stopped using the surrogate country approach to conduct anti-dumping investigations on China by Dec. 11, 2016.

Li urged both sides to stay committed to a fair and free global trading and investment system, expand two-way opening-up, share with each other development opportunities and jointly face up challenges under the current international political and economic situation.

China is willing to work with Belgium to promote trust building, cooperation in key areas, people-to-people exchanges, and coordination in international and regional affairs for better development of the two countries' comprehensive partnership for cooperation.

For his part, Michel said Belgium highly values China's important contribution in international affairs, and is willing to work with Beijing to promote global peace and stability.

International rules must be obeyed and promises should be fulfilled, he said, adding that his country is ready to play an active part to push the EU to fulfill its WTO obligations.

He also said Belgium would like to boost its cooperation with China in trade and investment, technology, innovation, infrastructure, agriculture and tourism, among others.

Both sides also exchanged in-depth views on international and regional issues of common concern.

Witnessed by Li and Michel, a series of bilateral cooperation agreements were signed, covering fields including infrastructure, manufacturing, quality testing, telecommunications and logistics.

After their meeting, they visited "Geely-Volvo Innovation Display" in Brussels.

China is expected to become more open under the backdrop of its implementation of "Made in China 2025" strategy, a ten-year national plan designed to transform the country from a manufacturing giant into a world manufacturing power, Li said, adding that he welcomes more foreign companies to invest in China.

During his official visit to Belgium, Li also met Belgian King Philippe.

While meeting with King Philippe, Li conveyed to him the greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying the Chinese side seeks to join Belgium in aligning their development strategies, promoting connectivity, and boosting cooperation in technology, energy conservation and environmental protection.

The King, for his part, said his country is happy to see the opportunities China's development has brought to the region and the wider world, and is willing to boost cooperation with China.

Li's Brussels trip, which also included the 19th China-EU leaders' meeting, came after his official visit to Germany, where he attended the annual meeting between Chinese premier and German chancellor.