Prague - The European Union and China on Wednesday hit
deadlock at a summit in Prague which had been meant to highlight
their reconciliation, as they failed to agree common language on any
of the key points dividing them.
As the two sides failed to bridge their differences on a number
of contentious issues, including Myanmar, North Korea, Taiwan,
climate change and trade liberalization, China's Prime Minister Wen
Jiabao called on the EU to expand 'practical cooperation'.
'The most important thing is to stick to the principles of mutual
respect and not interfere in each others internal affairs,' the
Chinese premier told a news conference after the summit.
And he also urged the 27-member bloc 'to ensure that our bilateral
relationship will not be adversely affected by individual incidents.'
Ahead of the summit, diplomats close to the preparations said that
each side had proposed a lengthy statement agreeing a common position
on the contentious issues.
The EU draft stretched to 10 pages of detailed diplomatic text,
while China's draft was seven pages long.
The rival drafts showed 'significant differences' over the
controversial issues, diplomats said.
And in two hours of talks, EU leaders and Chinese premier Wen
Jiabao failed to overcome those differences and agree a common
position on any of the main topics.
Instead, they issued a joint one-page statement saying that they
had 'focused on' economic and climate issues and 'exchanged views' on
diplomatic ones, without mentioning agreement on any of those points.
The statement said that the two sides 'expressed their
determination to strengthen cooperation' in the future.
The summit had been planned as a gesture of reconciliation after
China pulled out of an earlier meeting, scheduled for December 1, to
protest a meeting between French President Nicolas Sarkozy, then
holder of the EU's rotating presidency, with exiled Tibetan spiritual
leader the Dalai Lama.
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