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DENMARK was among the first Western countries to establish diplomatic ties with China 65 years ago. Over the years， the two sides have developed close cooperation and strong friendship.
In 2008， then Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen visited China and the two sides entered into a comprehensive strategic partnership. Since then， the two countries have proved able to form a broad and deep cooperative relationship. Bilateral relations have expanded from trade and investment to more areas such as science， security， culture， agriculture， and environment.
As this year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Denmark， China Today interviewed Danish ambassador to China， Friis Arne Petersen.
China Today： Chinese President Xi Jinping calls for promoting major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics and building a new international relationship based on cooperation and mutual benefits. What is your opinion on this Chinese policy and its influence on the relationship between China and Denmark？
Mr. Petersen： I think all professional diplomats are very attentive to China’s foreign policy. We understand intimately the classic elements of this policy and the doctrine of China， and are impressed by the fact that China endeavors to work within existing international organizations. China is a strong believer in the UN and the UN Charter， and a very important member of the WTO. I think the way that China primarily acts within the international architecture is very attractive to us.
As a small country in Northern Europe that also ardently believes in the international order manifest in the UN， its international laws， and trade rules as defined by the WTO， we desire the strongest possible cooperation with China within these organizations. We also know that China wants to cooperate bilaterally with many countries. We are one of those that want to build up a bilateral friendship and partnership with China within the existing international rules and laws. China and the EU have a very important strategic partnership， and that’s also significant for individual European Union member states like Denmark.
One of the newest Chinese diplomatic initiatives to create a regional， multilateral development bank that can help Asia build up its infrastructure investment is very important for us Europeans. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank （AIIB） will be an international development bank that can secure economic development in Asia， and eradicate poverty. Denmark has contributed much of our wealth and success in the past to development assistance. We have given US $2 to 2.5 billion in development assistance to try to eradicate poverty. The AIIB is really attractive to us and in our interests， thus， Denmark decided to be one of AIIB’s prospective founding members. On April 12， 2015， we were officially approved as a prospective founding member. I hope the AIIB will be， in the end， a transparent and effective bank， in line with the Chinese government’s declaration with regard to the future operation of the bank. I think it’s an important new international initiative by the Chinese government.
China Today： According to Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt， the Sino-Danish relationship is at an all-time high. You are experiencing this “all-time high relationship” as an ambassador. What’s your opinion on the development of the bilateral relationship in recent years？ What have been the highlights？
Mr. Petersen： It’s true that we are experiencing an “all-time high” in our relations， and it’s very much a consequence of the willingness on both sides to facilitate political cooperation between our two governments. In this regard， my work here has been easy and rewarding. Chinese ministries across the board have been most open to us and to our ministries. So I think the highlights have been the Danish ministers being welcomed to China， the openness with which they are received， and the rewarding cooperation that we have been able to create. More than 47 ministers from Denmark have visited China in the last four to five years and a large number of Chinese ministers and leaders have visited Denmark. The top highlight must be our two state visits， former President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Denmark in June 2012 and our Queen’s state visit to China in April last year. These visits are remarkable and unique because of the symbolism therein， and also because of our openness towards each other and willingness to discuss mutual interests， as well as difficult issues where we don’t always agree. Our relationship has evolved to include a new willingness to embrace the possibilities within an ambitious type of cooperation. That， for me， as a long-term professional diplomat， has been extremely gratifying to see and be part of.
As the state visit in April last year came to an end， the Queen and the Prince Consort Henrik gave my wife and I a signed and dated photo， an apt souvenir of this auspicious bilateral highlight in our relationship. I’m very proud of it.
China Today： Prime Minister Thorning-Schmidt once said that China and Denmark could expect further cooperation in building a green， fair economy. Could you expound on that？ Are there any plans and measures in this field？
Mr. Petersen： I think that our PM defined and summarized in her statement the whole agenda for the DanishChinese relationship and the coming years’ cooperation extremely well. Across the board， from the energy ministries， environmental ministries， ministries of agriculture and food security， to other political issues like anti-corruption and health care， we are joining hands more and more. There is a new realignment where the Chinese leaders’ new priorities for the “new normal” of China’s economic development complement and fit in with what we have been trying to achieve in the last 30 to 40 years. Consequently the government’s policy objectives for a more sustainable and socially inclusive economy and wider health coverage reflect some of the features and foundations of Danish society. I think that we will see a lot more cooperation in these attractive areas in the future. We saw exactly what the new Chinese minister of water resources， Chen Lei， accomplished during his visit to Denmark last May： more water cooperation， refined wastewater measures， and efforts to take care of water as a resource that is now more precious than ever. Because we have been working for a long time on that – the EUChina Water Platform is governed and led by Denmark –we expect to see strong cooperation in this area. The same is true for the fields of renewable energy， energy efficiency， and biomass. So we envisage a promising collaboration with the Chinese ministry for energy in these areas that bodes well for the future.
China Today： The Danish Ministry of the Environment signed an action plan with China’s Ministry of Water Resource last year. Could you tell us more about this？
Mr. Petersen： The Action Plan 2014-2018 in the field of Water Resources between the two countries is a followup addendum to the Memorandum of Understanding between the two ministries signed earlier. This action plan really spearheads environmental cooperation， particularly in the field of water， where China places priority on water preservation and management. We have been very lucky in our country to have worked with these issues for a long time.
During Mr. Chen’s visit to Denmark this year， he discussed cooperation on wastewater treatment and water preservation. Hopefully， we will see commercial interest in this field， companies following through and really delivering the technology that will facilitate this kind of exchange and allow Denmark and China to learn from each other.
China Today： China has become Denmark’s biggest trade partner in Asia and the country’s second largest investment destination. The bilateral trade is growing by some 10 percent each year. Which cooperative projects in recent years have impressed you and how are they going at the moment？
Mr. Petersen： Denmark is very fortunate to have so many big companies that are globally active and competitive. That they have entered the Chinese market very early and also， in the last 10 to 20 years， undertaken big investment projects here， is really amazing. As a government employee， I’m very proud that we have these global companies that have science and intellectual property rights （IPR） at the core of their business competence， which allows them to be here in China. China is a very difficult， competitive market. Many of them have succeeded in increasing their investment in China. The companies that have invested here include LEGO， Carlsberg， Maersk， and Novo Nordisk， to name a few. They have established research and development facilities， many of them here in China. A new LEGO factory was constructed in Jiaxing， Zhejiang Province last year. There are more than 500 Danish companies operating in China right now and more than 250，000 Chinese employees working in them， a really impressive development over the last 25 years. The other chapter， however， is that China’s investment in Denmark is not going very well. So I hope to see more and more Chinese companies start considering investing in Denmark. We have good business and investment environments， an uncorrupted government and a law-based society. It makes a lot of business sense for China to start considering investment opportunities in Denmark. The Danish government welcomes this， so I really hope that it will happen.
China Today： What kind of barriers and challenges need to be solved in bilateral trade cooperation？ For instance， are Danes reluctant to export high-tech products to China because they are afraid the products will be counterfeited？
Mr. Petersen： China’s State Intellectual Property Office （SIPO） and the market rules， which the Chinese government enacts， constantly tries to enforce， and upholds in daily economic life， are very important steps towards improving business conditions. The Danish government hopes that China will continue to build a rule of law-based society to create a more attractive economic environment that is in the interests of Chinese and Danish people alike. We are also negotiating an EU-China investment agreement， which we hope will come to an early conclusion to achieve greater investment security. It is clear that some of the IPR-intensive Danish companies get a little bit squeezed in China. But in general， we feel that the Chinese government is open to that conversation， so we can assure Danish companies that there are positive and long-term prospects for cooperation.
China Today： The Danish Cultural Season in China themed “Little Fairy Tale – Big Future” was held to celebrate 65 years of China-Denmark ties. What do you think of this event？ What more events will be organized in the future？
Mr. Petersen： The Danish Cultural Season in China is an important symbol of our governments supporting cultural and people-to-people exchanges. Another positive development is that both governments are trying to promote and support the opening of cultural institutes so there’ll be some lasting instruments to drive cultural cooperation in the future. A Chinese cultural center in Copenhagen and a Danish cultural center in Beijing’s 798 Art District have been set up. So we already have two good platforms for a long-term boost of cultural exchanges.
As for the cultural season itself， some of the activities have been very important， for example the children’s theater events. Children’s theater is an important element of Danish culture， and children are also very important in Chinese family. Introducing advanced Danish children’s theater to China has been a great achievement. Another achievement of the season is that we are presenting our 1，000-year-old history of maritime civilization by exhibiting a Viking ship in Suzhou， allowing some of the key elements of Viking culture to be made known to Chinese people.
The thing that I think will have the most impressive impact will be the film and TV series exchanges. During our Culture Minister’s visit she had a great conversation with her Chinese counterpart， and film and television authorities. Hopefully， the exchanges in this field will give our respective countries’ citizens a unique perspective for understanding each other’s culture. It will open eyes and maybe solve the problem of trying to attract Chinese investors to Denmark. I think this is going to be something that we will look back on in a few years’ time as a very important accomplishment.
China Today： What is the meaning of the logo that was especially designed for the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations？
Mr. Petersen： I think we’re so lucky to have a 65-year-long history of diplomatic relations. Few countries in the West have the opportunity to celebrate such a long diplomatic history. The EU celebrates 40 years of diplomatic relations with China， but Denmark has 65 years of relations to be proud of. The logo for the anniversary is based on the two symbols of the two countries： The dragon is the most well-known symbol for China that shows strength， authority and power. For Denmark， it is our national bird， the swan， which is very important in our history and culture – Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales contain a lot of swans. The swan is looking to the east， to China， and the dragon looks to the west， to Denmark. The number 65 is encircled below. The gold color represents luck and wealth. The logo emphasizes equality – the two animals are almost the same size and that is important.
In 2008， then Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen visited China and the two sides entered into a comprehensive strategic partnership. Since then， the two countries have proved able to form a broad and deep cooperative relationship. Bilateral relations have expanded from trade and investment to more areas such as science， security， culture， agriculture， and environment.
As this year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Denmark， China Today interviewed Danish ambassador to China， Friis Arne Petersen.
China Today： Chinese President Xi Jinping calls for promoting major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics and building a new international relationship based on cooperation and mutual benefits. What is your opinion on this Chinese policy and its influence on the relationship between China and Denmark？
Mr. Petersen： I think all professional diplomats are very attentive to China’s foreign policy. We understand intimately the classic elements of this policy and the doctrine of China， and are impressed by the fact that China endeavors to work within existing international organizations. China is a strong believer in the UN and the UN Charter， and a very important member of the WTO. I think the way that China primarily acts within the international architecture is very attractive to us.
As a small country in Northern Europe that also ardently believes in the international order manifest in the UN， its international laws， and trade rules as defined by the WTO， we desire the strongest possible cooperation with China within these organizations. We also know that China wants to cooperate bilaterally with many countries. We are one of those that want to build up a bilateral friendship and partnership with China within the existing international rules and laws. China and the EU have a very important strategic partnership， and that’s also significant for individual European Union member states like Denmark.
One of the newest Chinese diplomatic initiatives to create a regional， multilateral development bank that can help Asia build up its infrastructure investment is very important for us Europeans. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank （AIIB） will be an international development bank that can secure economic development in Asia， and eradicate poverty. Denmark has contributed much of our wealth and success in the past to development assistance. We have given US $2 to 2.5 billion in development assistance to try to eradicate poverty. The AIIB is really attractive to us and in our interests， thus， Denmark decided to be one of AIIB’s prospective founding members. On April 12， 2015， we were officially approved as a prospective founding member. I hope the AIIB will be， in the end， a transparent and effective bank， in line with the Chinese government’s declaration with regard to the future operation of the bank. I think it’s an important new international initiative by the Chinese government.
China Today： According to Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt， the Sino-Danish relationship is at an all-time high. You are experiencing this “all-time high relationship” as an ambassador. What’s your opinion on the development of the bilateral relationship in recent years？ What have been the highlights？
Mr. Petersen： It’s true that we are experiencing an “all-time high” in our relations， and it’s very much a consequence of the willingness on both sides to facilitate political cooperation between our two governments. In this regard， my work here has been easy and rewarding. Chinese ministries across the board have been most open to us and to our ministries. So I think the highlights have been the Danish ministers being welcomed to China， the openness with which they are received， and the rewarding cooperation that we have been able to create. More than 47 ministers from Denmark have visited China in the last four to five years and a large number of Chinese ministers and leaders have visited Denmark. The top highlight must be our two state visits， former President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Denmark in June 2012 and our Queen’s state visit to China in April last year. These visits are remarkable and unique because of the symbolism therein， and also because of our openness towards each other and willingness to discuss mutual interests， as well as difficult issues where we don’t always agree. Our relationship has evolved to include a new willingness to embrace the possibilities within an ambitious type of cooperation. That， for me， as a long-term professional diplomat， has been extremely gratifying to see and be part of.
As the state visit in April last year came to an end， the Queen and the Prince Consort Henrik gave my wife and I a signed and dated photo， an apt souvenir of this auspicious bilateral highlight in our relationship. I’m very proud of it.
China Today： Prime Minister Thorning-Schmidt once said that China and Denmark could expect further cooperation in building a green， fair economy. Could you expound on that？ Are there any plans and measures in this field？
Mr. Petersen： I think that our PM defined and summarized in her statement the whole agenda for the DanishChinese relationship and the coming years’ cooperation extremely well. Across the board， from the energy ministries， environmental ministries， ministries of agriculture and food security， to other political issues like anti-corruption and health care， we are joining hands more and more. There is a new realignment where the Chinese leaders’ new priorities for the “new normal” of China’s economic development complement and fit in with what we have been trying to achieve in the last 30 to 40 years. Consequently the government’s policy objectives for a more sustainable and socially inclusive economy and wider health coverage reflect some of the features and foundations of Danish society. I think that we will see a lot more cooperation in these attractive areas in the future. We saw exactly what the new Chinese minister of water resources， Chen Lei， accomplished during his visit to Denmark last May： more water cooperation， refined wastewater measures， and efforts to take care of water as a resource that is now more precious than ever. Because we have been working for a long time on that – the EUChina Water Platform is governed and led by Denmark –we expect to see strong cooperation in this area. The same is true for the fields of renewable energy， energy efficiency， and biomass. So we envisage a promising collaboration with the Chinese ministry for energy in these areas that bodes well for the future.
China Today： The Danish Ministry of the Environment signed an action plan with China’s Ministry of Water Resource last year. Could you tell us more about this？
Mr. Petersen： The Action Plan 2014-2018 in the field of Water Resources between the two countries is a followup addendum to the Memorandum of Understanding between the two ministries signed earlier. This action plan really spearheads environmental cooperation， particularly in the field of water， where China places priority on water preservation and management. We have been very lucky in our country to have worked with these issues for a long time.
During Mr. Chen’s visit to Denmark this year， he discussed cooperation on wastewater treatment and water preservation. Hopefully， we will see commercial interest in this field， companies following through and really delivering the technology that will facilitate this kind of exchange and allow Denmark and China to learn from each other.
China Today： China has become Denmark’s biggest trade partner in Asia and the country’s second largest investment destination. The bilateral trade is growing by some 10 percent each year. Which cooperative projects in recent years have impressed you and how are they going at the moment？
Mr. Petersen： Denmark is very fortunate to have so many big companies that are globally active and competitive. That they have entered the Chinese market very early and also， in the last 10 to 20 years， undertaken big investment projects here， is really amazing. As a government employee， I’m very proud that we have these global companies that have science and intellectual property rights （IPR） at the core of their business competence， which allows them to be here in China. China is a very difficult， competitive market. Many of them have succeeded in increasing their investment in China. The companies that have invested here include LEGO， Carlsberg， Maersk， and Novo Nordisk， to name a few. They have established research and development facilities， many of them here in China. A new LEGO factory was constructed in Jiaxing， Zhejiang Province last year. There are more than 500 Danish companies operating in China right now and more than 250，000 Chinese employees working in them， a really impressive development over the last 25 years. The other chapter， however， is that China’s investment in Denmark is not going very well. So I hope to see more and more Chinese companies start considering investing in Denmark. We have good business and investment environments， an uncorrupted government and a law-based society. It makes a lot of business sense for China to start considering investment opportunities in Denmark. The Danish government welcomes this， so I really hope that it will happen.
China Today： What kind of barriers and challenges need to be solved in bilateral trade cooperation？ For instance， are Danes reluctant to export high-tech products to China because they are afraid the products will be counterfeited？
Mr. Petersen： China’s State Intellectual Property Office （SIPO） and the market rules， which the Chinese government enacts， constantly tries to enforce， and upholds in daily economic life， are very important steps towards improving business conditions. The Danish government hopes that China will continue to build a rule of law-based society to create a more attractive economic environment that is in the interests of Chinese and Danish people alike. We are also negotiating an EU-China investment agreement， which we hope will come to an early conclusion to achieve greater investment security. It is clear that some of the IPR-intensive Danish companies get a little bit squeezed in China. But in general， we feel that the Chinese government is open to that conversation， so we can assure Danish companies that there are positive and long-term prospects for cooperation.
China Today： The Danish Cultural Season in China themed “Little Fairy Tale – Big Future” was held to celebrate 65 years of China-Denmark ties. What do you think of this event？ What more events will be organized in the future？
Mr. Petersen： The Danish Cultural Season in China is an important symbol of our governments supporting cultural and people-to-people exchanges. Another positive development is that both governments are trying to promote and support the opening of cultural institutes so there’ll be some lasting instruments to drive cultural cooperation in the future. A Chinese cultural center in Copenhagen and a Danish cultural center in Beijing’s 798 Art District have been set up. So we already have two good platforms for a long-term boost of cultural exchanges.
As for the cultural season itself， some of the activities have been very important， for example the children’s theater events. Children’s theater is an important element of Danish culture， and children are also very important in Chinese family. Introducing advanced Danish children’s theater to China has been a great achievement. Another achievement of the season is that we are presenting our 1，000-year-old history of maritime civilization by exhibiting a Viking ship in Suzhou， allowing some of the key elements of Viking culture to be made known to Chinese people.
The thing that I think will have the most impressive impact will be the film and TV series exchanges. During our Culture Minister’s visit she had a great conversation with her Chinese counterpart， and film and television authorities. Hopefully， the exchanges in this field will give our respective countries’ citizens a unique perspective for understanding each other’s culture. It will open eyes and maybe solve the problem of trying to attract Chinese investors to Denmark. I think this is going to be something that we will look back on in a few years’ time as a very important accomplishment.
China Today： What is the meaning of the logo that was especially designed for the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations？
Mr. Petersen： I think we’re so lucky to have a 65-year-long history of diplomatic relations. Few countries in the West have the opportunity to celebrate such a long diplomatic history. The EU celebrates 40 years of diplomatic relations with China， but Denmark has 65 years of relations to be proud of. The logo for the anniversary is based on the two symbols of the two countries： The dragon is the most well-known symbol for China that shows strength， authority and power. For Denmark， it is our national bird， the swan， which is very important in our history and culture – Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales contain a lot of swans. The swan is looking to the east， to China， and the dragon looks to the west， to Denmark. The number 65 is encircled below. The gold color represents luck and wealth. The logo emphasizes equality – the two animals are almost the same size and that is important.