programs in the world.^25 The Phase I (2004–2009) program covers manyfields
including trade, judicature, government governance, agriculture, environmental
protection, energy, education, health, social security, etc. The Phase II (2010–2015)
program was launched in 2011, with partners including many ministries and
commissions from the Chinese Central Government and many functional direc-
torate generals from the European Commission. With a focus on the development
priorities outlined in China’s 12th Five-year Plan, the EU will deepen its cooper-
ation with China in the service industry, technical barriers to trade, agriculture and
food security, customs supervisions, etc.; the EU will continue to support China in
improving laws and regulations governing the economy and trade and further
promote mutual understanding in order to boost China-EU economic and trade
development.
Besides bilateralfields, China and the EU also cooperate appropriately on
stimulating developing members, especially the least-developed countries, to par-
ticipate in building their international trade capacity through the WTO’s“Aid for
Trade”platform.
6.5 Summary and Outlook
China’s accession to the WTO in December, 2001 did not necessarily result in the
establishment of the China-EU Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in October,
- However, if China had not acceded to the WTO, it would have been very
difficult to imagine the situation of the establishment of the China-EU
Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. China’s accession to the WTO and China’s
integration into the WTO is a proposition for both China and the EU, and has a vital
bearing on China-EU trade relations and on China-EU relations in general; this
promotes bilateral trade, multilateral trade and world economy, and is beneficial for
China, the EU and even the international community.
6.5.1 Summary
In just one decade, both China and the EU acted, through the WTO as the only
legitimate multilateral platform governing international trade, to participate in the
Doha Round of trade negotiations, to use the dispute settlement mechanism to settle
bilateral trade disputes, to review each other’s trade policy and practice, to coor-
dinate and cooperate on other affairs, to boost the rapid growth of bilateral trade and
the healthy development of trade relations and to jointly contribute to the good
operation of the multilateral trade system.
(^25) http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2011-03/24/c_121228713.htm.
6 China-EU Relations in the Context of Global Trade Governance 135