France looks to strengthen dynamic economic and trade cooperation with China, with the focus on green economy, French ambassador to China Sylvie Bermann said Thursday.
On the sidelines of the eighth Women's Forum Global Meeting in Deauville, northwest France, Bermann highly commended the Chinese-French relationship in domains of politics, culture and economy, and expressed wishes to further cement trade ties and facilitate investment enough to harness lucrative business opportunities in both countries.
SOLID RELATION, HOPEFUL COOPERATION
Relations between France and China have been excellent since they started a long time ago, the Bermann told Xinhua in an interview on Thursday.
"Our relations are good in political field because we have the same security concerns, so we have a very close conversation on that," she added.
Bermann mentioned that French exports to China grew by 22 percent last year, but "we want to have more exports to China."
"We have a huge trade deficit and we would like to find solutions to rebalance our trade relations," she stressed.
Reminding strong Chinese-French partnership in aerospace, nuclear and auto manufacturing businesses, the ambassador pointed to the need to strengthen cooperation in innovative sectors.
"I would insist on green economy and sustainable development," she said.
Cooperation can also be expanded to other sectors such as agriculture, financial services, architecture and health, "because France has very good expertise and it's a priority in China," she said.
In addition, Bermann expressed her satisfaction with culture exchanges, saying that "we are two countries in which culture is very important and we have the most important French festival in the world being held in Beijing."
The ambassador called for more reforms to attract French investment as Paris "would like to have the possibility to invest more in China."
She considered the two-way investment a win-win solution for both sides and called for more Chinese investment in France. "There are some fiscal advantages concerning research and development and we have very qualified workforce. We think there should be more Chinese investment in France. For the time being, the Chinese companies in France are employing 7,000 people but Japanese companies are employing 60,000," she said.
Meanwhile, she stressed that "China should facilitate the access to the market and respect intellectual property."
France, Europe's second largest economy, was handicapped by spiralling debt crisis and slow growth, adding more risks to weight on the country's economic partnerships.
But Bermann saw good signs in the euro zone. "The situation in Europe encourages us to develop trade relations with China," She said. "Europeans took the right decisions and establish (the needed) mechanisms."
"We are confident that there will be a rebound of European economy and we are glad that China always supports the euro and the European Union," Bermann said. "It's very important since it's a question of confidence of the market."
HUGE CHANGE IN CHINA
Studying in Beijing in 1976 and fluent in mandarin, Bermann has witnessed China's reform and opening-up drive. She has profound insights on the tremendous changes brought by the reform and opening-up policy.
"Changes in China were huge during the past 30 years. What's interested me most is the society. It's very dynamic, very free," she said. "Of course economic successes are absolutely fascinating and brilliant."
As the 18th national congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is to be convened next month, the world is now observing how China will change in the future.
"It's going to be a new period with new leader," Bermann said. "There are many challenges, of course, it has been a period of incredible growth and there is a slowdown, so the new leader will have to cope with that and to pursue the opening up policy, and as I said, before the modernization and democratization of the society."
Attending the 2012 Women's Forum Global Meeting, the French ambassador to China hailed Chinese women's business experiences and expressed hope to boost expertise exchange between French and Chinese women.
"Chinese women are very successful especially in the business field. Maybe they are less present in the political field. I realize that there is a lot of Chinese female journalists, young people with a lot of ideas, a lot of questions," She said.
She was content with the 25 Chinese women representatives attending the Deauville meeting and looking forward to having more contact with Chinese women in Beijing.
Founded in 2005 by French psychologist Aude Zieseniss de Thuin, the Women's Forum for the Economy and Society is the first independent forum in the world to promote women's status in the economy and society.
On the sidelines of the eighth Women's Forum Global Meeting in Deauville, northwest France, Bermann highly commended the Chinese-French relationship in domains of politics, culture and economy, and expressed wishes to further cement trade ties and facilitate investment enough to harness lucrative business opportunities in both countries.
SOLID RELATION, HOPEFUL COOPERATION
Relations between France and China have been excellent since they started a long time ago, the Bermann told Xinhua in an interview on Thursday.
"Our relations are good in political field because we have the same security concerns, so we have a very close conversation on that," she added.
Bermann mentioned that French exports to China grew by 22 percent last year, but "we want to have more exports to China."
"We have a huge trade deficit and we would like to find solutions to rebalance our trade relations," she stressed.
Reminding strong Chinese-French partnership in aerospace, nuclear and auto manufacturing businesses, the ambassador pointed to the need to strengthen cooperation in innovative sectors.
"I would insist on green economy and sustainable development," she said.
Cooperation can also be expanded to other sectors such as agriculture, financial services, architecture and health, "because France has very good expertise and it's a priority in China," she said.
In addition, Bermann expressed her satisfaction with culture exchanges, saying that "we are two countries in which culture is very important and we have the most important French festival in the world being held in Beijing."
The ambassador called for more reforms to attract French investment as Paris "would like to have the possibility to invest more in China."
She considered the two-way investment a win-win solution for both sides and called for more Chinese investment in France. "There are some fiscal advantages concerning research and development and we have very qualified workforce. We think there should be more Chinese investment in France. For the time being, the Chinese companies in France are employing 7,000 people but Japanese companies are employing 60,000," she said.
Meanwhile, she stressed that "China should facilitate the access to the market and respect intellectual property."
France, Europe's second largest economy, was handicapped by spiralling debt crisis and slow growth, adding more risks to weight on the country's economic partnerships.
But Bermann saw good signs in the euro zone. "The situation in Europe encourages us to develop trade relations with China," She said. "Europeans took the right decisions and establish (the needed) mechanisms."
"We are confident that there will be a rebound of European economy and we are glad that China always supports the euro and the European Union," Bermann said. "It's very important since it's a question of confidence of the market."
HUGE CHANGE IN CHINA
Studying in Beijing in 1976 and fluent in mandarin, Bermann has witnessed China's reform and opening-up drive. She has profound insights on the tremendous changes brought by the reform and opening-up policy.
"Changes in China were huge during the past 30 years. What's interested me most is the society. It's very dynamic, very free," she said. "Of course economic successes are absolutely fascinating and brilliant."
As the 18th national congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is to be convened next month, the world is now observing how China will change in the future.
"It's going to be a new period with new leader," Bermann said. "There are many challenges, of course, it has been a period of incredible growth and there is a slowdown, so the new leader will have to cope with that and to pursue the opening up policy, and as I said, before the modernization and democratization of the society."
Attending the 2012 Women's Forum Global Meeting, the French ambassador to China hailed Chinese women's business experiences and expressed hope to boost expertise exchange between French and Chinese women.
"Chinese women are very successful especially in the business field. Maybe they are less present in the political field. I realize that there is a lot of Chinese female journalists, young people with a lot of ideas, a lot of questions," She said.
She was content with the 25 Chinese women representatives attending the Deauville meeting and looking forward to having more contact with Chinese women in Beijing.
Founded in 2005 by French psychologist Aude Zieseniss de Thuin, the Women's Forum for the Economy and Society is the first independent forum in the world to promote women's status in the economy and society.
