On July 26, 2011, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met with Ambassador Markus Ederer, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to China. Yang expressed welcome for Ederer to assume his new office and made positive comments on the sound development of China-EU relations. He said China attaches importance to EU and urged both sides to work together to ensure the success of the 14th EU-China summit scheduled for the second half of the year in a bid to further advance China-EU cooperation in all areas. Ederer thanked China for supporting the EU to cope with the debt crisis, pledging to commit to enriching EU-China strategic cooperation, properly handle concerns of both sides and make sure EU-China relations will move forward without interference.