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China-EU Blue Year

On 2 March, the EU Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Karmenu Vella, and his Chinese counterpart embarked on formal talks linked to the “China-EU Blue Year” in Brussels.

The aim of this initiative is to further cooperation and dialogue to promote innovation and ensure the sustainable development of maritime economies of China and the EU Member States. A number of dedicated events and exchanges will take place in both the EU and China throughout 2017.

On 3 March, the EMB Secretariat participated in a meeting with a delegation of officials from the State Oceanic Administration of China and the Chinese Representation to the EU. The visit took place in Bruges, alongside the VLIZ Marine Science Day. The meeting was also attended by representatives from EMODnet, the Danish Meteorological Institute and Ifremer. During the visit, the EMB Executive Director, Niall McDonough, welcomed the delegation and presented the work of the Board, as well as introducing some of the current activities.  The interactions were very positive and duing the meeting, options for joint activities were discussed. A number of topics were also identified as possible areas for future joint Working Groups.

The programme and presentations from the meeting can be found here.