Zhou Xiaoyan, Director-General of the Department of European Affairs of the Ministry of Commerce, revealed on the 5th at a special press conference for the Third China-CEEC Investment and Trade Expo that China has so far signed cooperation documents on advancing the "Belt and Road" with 13 of the 16 Central and Eastern European countries. The enthusiasm of Central and Eastern European countries to participate in the "Belt and Road" initiative is growing, and connectivity and production capacity cooperation will be the focus of "16+1" cooperation in the future.

Zhou Xiaoyan pointed out that in recent years, economic and trade cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries has been solidly advanced. The import and export trade volume between China and the 16 Central and Eastern European countries increased from US$43.9 billion in 2010 to US$58.7 billion in 2016. The share of bilateral trade in China-Europe trade has continued to rise, accounting for 9.8% of China's import and export trade with Europe during the same period in 2016. According to incomplete statistics, Chinese enterprises have invested more than US$8 billion in Central and Eastern European countries, involving machinery, chemicals, telecommunications, home appliances, new energy, logistics and commerce, research and development, finance, agriculture and other fields, with increasingly diverse forms of investment. The 16 Central and Eastern European countries have invested more than US$1.2 billion in China, involving machinery manufacturing, auto parts, chemicals, finance, environmental protection and many other fields.

"Connectivity and production capacity cooperation will be the focus of '16+1' cooperation in the future," Zhou Xiaoyan said. Central and Eastern European countries have extensive needs for infrastructure construction and renewal. The Hungary-Serbia Railway and the China-Europe Land-Sea Express Line currently under construction will connect Central and Eastern Europe with Southern Europe and are flagship projects of China-Europe connectivity cooperation. China has advantages in funding, technology and management in infrastructure construction, and the space and potential for bilateral cooperation in infrastructure construction are huge. In terms of production capacity cooperation, China can leverage its advantageous industries such as high-speed rail, nuclear power, chemicals and steel to match the substantial demand for project construction in Central and Eastern Europe, promote local employment through models such as building factories on site and jointly building industrial parks, and drive industrial upgrading and transformation on both sides.