BRUSSELS, May 18 (Xinhua) -- As major members of the WTO and comprehensive strategic partners for each other, China and the European Union (EU) have a joint responsibility to stand for the rules-based multilateral trade order, reject unilateralism and protectionism, and keep the world economy on the right course, Zhang Ming, head of the Chinese Mission to the EU, has said.

Addressing a luncheon hosted Thursday evening by the Belgian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (BCECC), Zhang told the audience, including former president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy, that "it is important for China and the EU to jointly uphold the multilateral trading system."

"Faced with international uncertainties, a stable China-EU relationship is a valuable asset for all," he noted.

The EU has remained China's top one trading partner for 14 years, and China is the second largest trading partner of the EU. According to Chinese statistics, bilateral trade reached 616.9 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, up by 12.7 percent year on year.

By March 2018, the EU has made nearly 122-billion-dollar investment in China in accumulative terms, and Chinese stock investment in the EU is over 80 billion dollars. Economically, China and the EU are complementary and inter-dependent.

Against this backdrop, "it is important (for the two sides) to focus on common ground and deliver more tangible outcomes," he noted.

"We need to ensure good implementation of the China-EU 2020 Strategic Agenda for Cooperation, further synergize our development strategies, and advance cooperation in connectivity, digital economy, legal affairs, travel facilitation, among other areas," said the ambassador.

He further called on the two sides to take the negotiation of a bilateral investment treaty as a priority.

"We both want to reach an ambitious and balanced outcome as quickly as we can. So far, we have made good progress. A new round of talks is scheduled for next week in Beijing. Hopefully, more progress could be made before the China-EU summit in July," said Zhang, calling for efforts to work toward an early conclusion of the treaty.

As to differences on trade issues including EU's use of a surrogate country approach in probes against Chinese products, Zhang reaffirmed that "it is important to properly handle differences in a smart way."

"Given the scale and intensity of our cooperation, it is natural for us to have competition and some frictions. But we must approach these 'growing pains' with an open mind. After all, our interests converge much more than they diverge," said the ambassador.

"We have effective mechanisms for dialogue and consultation, and we can rely on them to manage our differences," he said, adding Beijing welcomes more European investment in China while calling on the EU side to "keep its market open to Chinese investors as well and treat them fairly."

"We are fortunate to live in an age of great change. Change always means opportunities. People with vision are ready to seize them. I look forward to the continued efforts of BCECC and its members to build bridges between China and Europe, and contribute even more to the China-Belgium and China-EU relations," he concluded.

The BCECC is a Belgian business association for companies engaged in doing business in or with China. Base in Brussels, it is a non-profit organization established in the 1980s following the beginning of China's reform and opening-up policy.