On January 30, 2009, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met in Brussels with his Czech counterpart Mirek Topolanek, whose country holds the current EU presidency.

The Czech Republic was among the first countries to recognize the People's Republic of China, and Chinese and Czech peoples enjoy traditional friendship, said Wen. China and the Czech Republic have no problems left over from history nor fundamental conflicts of interest, but share broad and increasing common interests in this age of globalization, he said. The two countries should strengthen mutual understanding and trust and expand exchanges and cooperation based on mutual respect and equality, said Wen. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of China-Czech diplomatic relations, he said. "Taking it as a good opportunity, China is willing to work with the Czech Republic to raise bilateral ties to a new height."

Wen said developing China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership is in line with the trends of the times, and is also a strategic choice of both sides. With a complicated international political context and lingering economic uncertainties, China and the EU should consolidate cooperation and work together for a shared response to grave challenges such as the raging global economic slump, thus making greater contribution to the world peace and development, said Wen. The China-EU relationship would run smoothly as long as the two sides observe the principles of mutual respect, non-interference in the internal affairs, mutual benefit and win-win progress, he said. The Chinese premier also called on the Czech Republic, which now holds the EU presidency, to play a positive role in further enhancing the development of the China-EU relations.

Topolanek hailed the remarkable achievements China has scored in its socio-economic development, saying China's influence to the world is important and positive. The Czech Republic highly values its relations with China and is ready to promote bilateral ties through beefing up bilateral exchanges and cooperation, Topolanek said.

The Chinese premier launched a week-long European tour at the beginning of the new year, which in itself reflects that China has attached great importance to its ties with the EU, he noted. China is an important strategic cooperative partner of EU. China and the EU should maintain close coordination and consultation in dealing with major issues such as the financial crisis, Topolanek said. The Czech Republic is ready to make positive efforts in pushing forward the China-EU relations, he added.

On the evening of January 29, Premier Wen called on the staff of the Chinese Mission to the EU and the Chinese Embassy in Belgium, as well as representatives from Chinese-funded institutions, overseas Chinese and Chinese students.