Chinese president makes proposal on expanding Sino-Austrian cooperation

Visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao here on Monday brought forward a three-point proposal on advancing practical cooperation in key areas between China and Austria. Hu made the proposal when meeting with Austrian Federal Chancellor Werner Faymann. Firstly, Hu said, the two countries need to further promote cooperation and further expand trade volume. He expressed the hope that China and Austria will make concerted efforts to double their two-way trade level in 2010, which stood at 6 billion U.S. dollars, by 2015. "China is ready to import more commodities from Austria," Hu said, voicing the hope that the Austrian side will increase hi-tech exports to China and create favorable conditions for Chinese businesses to invest in Austria. Secondly, the two sides need to exploit their respective advantages to expand "green cooperation," he said. The Chinese president hoped that the two sides will take concrete steps to carry out the China-Austria Technology Park project, accelerate the construction of the China-Austria ecological park and strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation in such areas as intelligent transport, green public transport, ecological agriculture and life science, so as to elevate their cooperation on green technology to a higher level. Thirdly, China and Austria should further tap their cooperative potential for future growth, Hu said. China encourages enterprises of both countries to expand their investments in the other's country, jointly develop new products and participate in Central and Eastern Europe's drive for economic development, he said, adding that both countries need to boost cooperation in service and financial industries. Faymann, for his part, said that Austria stands ready to work with China to enhance practical cooperation in various areas such as politics, economy, trade and culture. The Austrian side strives to improve energy efficiency and environmental protection and directs its efforts to research on solar and wind energy, he said, adding that his country is willing to discuss with the Chinese side on the creation of the ecological park, he added. The two sides exchanged views on the current economic and financial situation in Europe and the upcoming summit of the Group of Twenty (G20). Earlier in the day, President Hu met his Austrian counterpart Heinz Fischer and laid out a multi-point proposal on further strengthening bilateral cooperation. Hu arrived in Vienna on Sunday for a state visit to Austria. Following his Austria trip, he will fly to France to attend the G20 summit slated for Nov. 3-4 in Cannes, France.