Trade deals
June 27, 2011
Britain and China announced Monday that they had signed new bilateral trade deals worth 1.4 billion pounds (1.57 billion euro/$2.2 billion.)
Following the talks, British Prime Minister David Cameron and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao held a press conference in London where they pledged to raise the level of bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2015.
Cameron said he and Wen agreed that Europe should not fear Chinese competition, but "open up trade in both directions." China was ready to make its contribution to "rebalancing global growth," added Cameron.
Although talks were dominated by the country's commitment to boosting trade, Cameron also approached the issue of human rights in China, saying it was important that "economic and political progress" should go hand in hand.
Wen, however, responded by asserting that no country should engage in "finger-pointing."
"Our common interests outweigh our differences," he added, referring to the relationship between Britain and China.
Wrapping up his high-profile European tour, Wen flies to Germany late Monday for talks on helping the eurozone out of its crisis.
Author: Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (AFP, dpa, Reuters)
Editor: Martin Kuebler