Wang Yi Holds Talks with Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod

On November 26, 2021, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod in Anji County, Zhejiang Province.

Wang Yi said, Denmark is one of the first Western countries to recognize and establish diplomatic ties with New China, and China's only comprehensive strategic partner among the Nordic countries. The history of over 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Denmark shows that as long as the two countries respect the systems and paths chosen by each other's people, earnestly accommodate each other's legitimate and reasonable concerns, continuously deepen mutual trust, and strengthen the political foundation for bilateral ties, bilateral relations will maintain sustained and sound progress, bilateral cooperation in various fields will deliver fruitful outcomes, and the two peoples will gain more tangible benefits. China appreciates Denmark's adherence to the one-China principle, and stands ready to work with Denmark to continue adhering to the positioning of bilateral cooperative partnership, the principle of seeking common ground while reserving differences, the direction of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, and the concept of green and open development. Both sides will strengthen political guidance and strategic alignment, and promote new and greater development of China-Denmark relations.

Wang Yi said, China-Denmark cooperation is highly complementary. Both sides have yielded gratifying results in cooperation of such fields as climate change, energy efficiency, water resource management, intellectual property rights, technological innovation and food safety. China's fostering of a new development paradigm will open up broader prospects for China-Denmark cooperation. China welcomes more Danish quality products to enter into China's market, and is willing to provide convenience for Danish enterprises to invest in China. Meanwhile, China hopes that the Danish side will create a sound business environment for Chinese enterprises based on the principle of equity, transparency and non-discriminatory. Both sides should strengthen cultural and people-to-people exchanges, enhance mutual understanding, create a positive atmosphere of public opinion and build stronger public support for the development of bilateral relations.

Kofod said, Denmark always follows the positioning of Denmark-China comprehensive strategic partnership, and takes it as the cornerstone of developing relations with China. Denmark adheres to the one-China principle, and always conducts dialogue and cooperation with China in the principle of mutual respect and controlling differences, maintaining a strong momentum of growth in bilateral relations. Denmark agrees to fully leverage the complementary advantages of the two countries to elevate bilateral relations to a new height. Denmark is an open economy, and welcomes Chinese enterprises to invest in Denmark and would not discriminate or differentiate against any company. Denmark congratulates China on hosting the Beijing Olympic Winter Games, and Danish athletes have high expectations of participating in the event. Denmark highly appreciates that China has set the goals of peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality, and declared it will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad, which fully demonstrates China's global leadership. Denmark is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in fields such as climate change and sustainable development, and jointly address global challenges.

The two sides also had an exchange of views on China-EU relations. Wang Yi said, China and the EU are partners, not rivals, and the two sides enjoy broad prospects and enormous potential for cooperation. The sound and steady development of China-EU relations serves the common interests of both sides. The two sides should overcome obstructions and interruptions, and work in the same direction to maintain the fundamental positioning of comprehensive strategic partnership. China hopes that Denmark will play a constructive role in this regard. Kofod said, China is an important partner of the EU, and Denmark supports stronger EU-China cooperation. The EU and China do not necessarily agree with each other on all issues, but he believes that both sides can find the appropriate ways of maintaining contacts and dialogue.

The two sides also exchanged views on the Afghan situation and other international and regional issues of common concern.

Both sides declared the launch of negotiating the new version of the China-Denmark Joint Work Programme. During Kofod's visit to China, the competent authorities of both sides signed cooperation documents related to climate change, environmental protection, water resource management, intellectual property rights and food safety.