China and the European Union enjoy a deeply intertwined economic relationship, with supply chains in green energy, pharmaceuticals and high-end manufacturing tightly linked, experts said, warning that the real threat is not interdependence but Brussels' push to "de-risk".

They called for the two sides to properly manage their differences and find more common ground through dialogue on equal terms, which serves the best interests of both sides and will inject certainty into a tepid global economic recovery.

Since the start of the year, Brussels has been expanding its trade defense arsenal, unveiling a series of restrictive measures targeting Chinese enterprises and products.

Most recently, its push to force European companies to diversify suppliers under the EU's proposed revision of the Cybersecurity Act is piling on yet more investment barriers and institutional discrimination, with China bearing the brunt.

On Saturday, the Ministry of Commerce announced that China and the EU are discussing the establishment of "a trade and investment consultation mechanism" and would hold talks on that front.

China and the EU are "important economic and trade partners based on equality and mutual benefit", said a spokesperson with the ministry.

The spokesperson expressed hope that the EU will work with China to address differences and frictions through dialogue and consultation, and promote the steady and sound development of China-EU economic and trade relations.

If the European side insists on unilaterally rolling out new trade impediments and imposing discriminatory restrictions, China will "respond firmly and take effective measures" to safeguard its own interests, the spokesperson added.

A day before the ministry's announcement, the European Commission's College of Commissioners held an orientation debate on EU-China relations, saying that the overarching approach remains "de-risking, not decoupling".

"China is a critical partner, and engagement and dialogue will continue," the commission added.

Trade between China and the EU reached a record $828.1 billion in 2025, a 5.4 percent increase from the previous year, with the two sides remaining each other's second-largest trading partners, according to Chinese customs data.

The vitality of China-EU economic and trade relations lies in the natural complementarity of their economic structures, said Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.

Europe's strength in high-end manufacturing, precision instruments, automobiles, aerospace, pharmaceuticals and luxury goods fits seamlessly with China's super-sized market, complete industrial and supply chains and continuously upgrading consumption capacity, Tu said.

A recent survey of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China showed that European companies are doubling down on manufacturing in China despite the EU's "de-risking" push.

China remains "the heavyweight champion of highly efficient and cost-effective supply chains", with 75 percent of respondents describing their China-based production as more efficient than operations elsewhere, according to the survey.

Jian Junbo, director of the Center for China-Europe Relations at Fudan University, said with China now firmly established as the world's leading manufacturing hub, the EU's most pragmatic path forward is to address trade differences through dialogue and consultation, rather than unilateral measures.

wangkeju@chinadaily.com.cn