Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu said in Beijing on July 14 China and the European Union (EU) should establish a mechanism on agricultural cooperation.

Hui set forth the proposal to EU Commissioner for agriculture and rural development Mariann Fischer Boel, who is currently in China to attend the World Trade Organization (WTO) informal ministerial meeting held in Dalian, a port city in northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Hui and Boel met in Zhongnanhai, the headquarters of the Chinese government in Beijing Thursday afternoon.

During the meeting, Hui raised the proposal that a cooperative mechanism should be formed to strengthen dialogue and consultation and to promote trade and cooperation of agricultural products between China and the European Union.

Hui suggested that China and EU continue expanding cooperation on development aid in such areas as rural development, poverty reduction, the protection of agricultural and ecological resources, quality and safety of agricultural products and animal health.

Boel expressed the readiness to go on advancing EU-China agricultural cooperation and promote common development of agriculture.

Trade ministers from some 30 WTO members discussed the issue of reducing agricultural subsidies at the Dalian meeting

Boel welcomed the progress made at the meeting, as a group of developing-nation members put forward proposals for reducing agricultural export subsidies and market access.

In a separate press release, Boel said the proposals serve as a very good basis for further work.

"We heard that US president George W. Bush proposed to cut off US agricultural export subsidies by the year of 2010, and we felt it is a good news", Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai told a press conference in Dalian Wednesday.

Source: Xinhua