On April 12, 2012, Vice Foreign Minister Song Tao, at invitation, attended the China-Central and Eastern Europe Symposium and delivered a keynote speech under the title of Deepening Friendship for Common Development.

Song comprehensively elaborated China’s proposition of strengthening cooperation with countries in Central and Eastern Europe. He stressed that to enhance win-win cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries responds to the call of the times under the background of economic globalization. The two sides should deepen mutual trust and respect, understand and support each other politically; expand trade and investment cooperation and broaden economic cooperation constantly; strengthen friendship through cultural exchanges and consolidate social foundation of friendship; step up communications and coordination in international affairs; and jointly promote world peace, stability and development.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Martonyi delivered a welcome speech. He stressed that Hungary and China have become good partners. The Hungarian government is committed to expanding the bilateral pragmatic cooperation in the political, economic and cultural fields and expects to play an active role of deepening the relations between China and Central and Eastern European countries. Hungarian Minister for National Economy György Matolcsy made a speech on how Hungary and other Central and Eastern European countries step up economic cooperation with China.

The symposium was hosted by the Hungarian Foreign Ministry and attended by nearly 100 experts and scholars, business representatives, journalists and diplomats in Hungary from China and Central and Eastern Europe. Three major topics were discussed during the symposium, i.e. the political environment for the cooperation between Central and Eastern Europe and China, the cooperation opportunities faced by China in Central and Eastern Europe and the cultural exchanges between Central and Eastern Europe and China.