China, EU Pledge to Become `big Partners'

[Spazito]

BEIJING - The leaders of China and the European Union (news - web sites) vowed Thursday to build closer economic and technology ties so the two regions can become each other's biggest trading partners — and, by implication, counterbalance their relations with the United States.


To that end, the two sides agreed to give China a stake in developing Galileo, a European-sponsored project that would rival the U.S.-run satellite navigation system known as the Global Positioning System (news - web sites), or GPS.


"Europe, with its new reality, and China, with its new reforms, are two areas that can give better contributions to the changing world," European Commission (news - web sites) President Romano Prodi said after a meeting between EU leaders and Chinese President Hu Jintao.

"We need to intensify our relations, both in the trade and investment sectors. We must become the biggest partners," Prodi said. "We must have the biggest relations — more than anywhere in the world."

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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=516&e=9&u=/ap/china_eu

[TahitiNut]

1. duplicate

See http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=191957