On April 28, 2020, Ambassador Zhang Ming, Head of the Chinese Mission to the EU, talked with EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan on the phone upon invitation. The two sides had an exchange of views regarding the China-EU cooperation on COVID-19, negotiations on the bilateral investment agreement and international economic and trade situations. Minister Counselor Xia Xiang for Economic and Commercial Affairs in the Chinese Mission to the EU joined the phone call.

Commissioner Hogan expressed gratitude for China's support for EU in fighting the pandemic. Commissioner Hogan recognized the progress made in the negotiations on the investment agreement, and expressed confidence in concluding the agreement by the end of this year, which will send a positive signal about the China-EU cooperation. Both EU and China support multilateralism, uphold the multilateral trading regime with the WTO at the core and have carried out positive cooperation on issues such as the interim appeal arbitration arrangement.

Ambassador Zhang Ming said that in face of severe challenges to global economy and international trade, China and EU need to step up coordination and cooperation to boost global confidence in international economic and trade prospects. China hopes to work with the EU to strengthen global response to COVID-19, maintain the stability of global industrial and supply chains, keep the openness of international cooperation and markets, and uphold the multilateral trading regime. Ambassador Zhang expressed the hope that the two sides would step up efforts to conclude the investment agreement this year, which would be of significance to the world economy.