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FTA talks with New Zealand to end in 2 years
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-04-06 16:17
WELLINGTON -- China and New Zealand have agreed to conclude their
negotiations on Free Trade Area (FTA) in one or two years.
Visiting
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark made the
announcement after their talks.
The deal should be "comprehensive,
high-quality, balanced and acceptable for both," Wen, who was on an official
visit to New Zealand, told press on Thursday.
The negotiations, already
lasting for six years, "has entered a critical phase" and will "touch upon
certain sensitive issues, including agriculture and service sectors." However,
all these " are not difficulties unsummontable."
Should the two sides
adopt an attitude of equality, mutual benefit, mutual compromise, the
difficulties can be overcome, he said.
"This shows the resolve of
statesmen and willingness of the people," he said.
Give the FTA deal be
signed, New Zealand would become the first developed country to reach such a
deal with China.
New Zealand has already taken three "firsts" among the
developed country, which are the first to sign bilateral agreement on China's
WTO admission; the first to recognize China's market economy status and the
first to launch FTA talks with China.
China "hopes New Zealand to strike
more firsts in term of its relations with China," Wen said.
Clark listed
other achievements reached on the talks: the setup of annual meeting mechanism
between leaders of the two countries, either in the other's capital or in
international meetings or multi-lateral occasions; close collaboration in APEC
and at the East Asian Summit; new links to China after the launching of non-
stop flight between Auckland and Shanghai; and New Zealand's participation in
the World Expo, due to be held in Shanghai.
On Taiwan issue, Clark
reiterated that the New Zealand government observed the one-China policy and
opposed any effort to separate Taiwan from China.
In a luncheon to
welcome Wen, Clark said "We marvel at the sheer magnitude of China's growth, and
the dramatic development is unleashing. New Zealand can be both a contributor to
and a beneficiary of China's growth and development."
In New Zealand,
the third-leg of Wen's four-nation tour, both sides have agreed to hone a
relationship of all-round cooperation with mutual benefits and win-win outcome.
The two sides also agreed to jointly fight against trans-national crimes, expand
mutual investment in agriculture and animal husbandry.
The two prime
ministers also witnessed signing of four cooperative documents, including: a
treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, a cultural agreement, a
protocol on veterinary and sanitary requirements for edible dear products to be
exported from New Zealand to China, and a memorandum of understanding on
cooperation in education and training between the two countries.
More
concentration was focused on the education deal. New Zealand is host to nearly
30,000 Chinese students studying at many levels. "Today Premier Wen and I have
agreed on a new initiative for cooperation on high-level educational research
and vocational training," Clark said.
The signing of a commercial deal
also drew wide attention. Fonterra, a giant of New Zealand's diary industry,
gets greenlight for forming a China joint venture. It will take 43 percent of
stake in the Chinese diary company Sanlu. The exact amount of investment
involved has yet be revealed.
William McQiu, a diary industry expert,
said "the deal reflects the fact the New Zeand diary industry have great
opportunities to exploit their expertise in all areas of the business from milk
collection to consumer goods in the vast China
market."
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