Climate change will be the main subject of discussion when European Commission (EC) President Jose Manuel Barroso meets with Premier Wen Jiabao at the end of April, the European Union's (EU) ambassador to China Serge Abou said yesterday.

Addressing senior officials at the inauguration of an international conference in Beijing, Abou said he read the French version of Wen's Government Work Report, delivered at the National People's Congress (NPC) session on Wednesday.

"Premier Wen made an impressive speech. The main tone of his speech was about continuity and maintaining the country's policies, opening-up and reform, as well as serving the people," said Abou, who is also head of the EC delegation to China.

Climate change and related issues have been mentioned many times in Wen's report, he said.

"I'm very pleased to see that the Chinese government has attached high importance to climate change in line with its new scientific outlook on development and resources conservation models."

"For the past decade, China and EU have been working closely on environmental and energy issues through ministerial-level dialogues, high-level working groups, joint workshops, conferences and the Sino-EU cooperation program."

China is taking all possible measures to adjust its economy, improve efficiency in the use of energy and control greenhouse gases emissions, said Su Wei, director-general of the Office of National Leading Group on Climate Change, under the National Development and Reform Commission.

China spent 23.5 billion yuan (US$3.3 billion) in energy saving projects, and more than 140 billion yuan to develop renewable energy last year, Su said.

The EU is undergoing a third industrial revolution to switch to truly sustainable energy sources and change the mode of energy use in transportation and housing, Abou said.

This has opened new avenues of cooperation for China and EU, which already are strategic partners in the fight against climate change.

"Together with China, we can make a difference," Abou said. "For instance, Europe has acquired a lot of experience in environmental protection, energy efficiency, and agricultural and regional policies. EU member states have advanced and efficient public services, especially in health and education, as well as extensive social security systems. These are the fields where we can share our experiences and expertise."

(China Daily March 7, 2008)