On 21 April 2022, the Chinese Ambassador to Belgium Mr. Cao Zhongming attended and addressed the Exclusive Dinner Event on the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics Held by the Belgian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (BECCC). Chairman Bernard Dewit of the BCECC, President Jean-Michel Saive of the Belgian Olympic and Interfederal Committee (BOIC) and over 70 representatives from the Chinese and Belgian business communities attended the event. 

In his speech, Ambassador Cao congratulated the Belgian delegation for their wonderful performance at the Beijing Winter Olympics and expressed appreciation to the BOIC and the Belgian delegation for their support to the Games. Ambassador Cao noted that at the Beijing Winter Olympics, Belgian athletes have put in their hard work and made two historic breakthroughs: the first gold medal in 74 years and the first medal by a female athlete. The performance of the athletes speaks to the Olympic spirit. Committed to organizing a green, inclusive, open and clean Games, China has made every effort to counter the impact of COVID-19 and presented to the world a streamlined, safe and splendid Olympic Games. This would not have been possible without the understanding and support of Belgium and other countries.

Ambassador Cao noted that on the Olympic field of play, athletes have pursued the Olympic spirit of higher, faster and stronger; On the field of play of the global market, Chinese and Belgian businesses have also worked hard to expand cooperation and sharpen competitive edge, in a bid to set the pace. In 2021, bilateral trade between China and Belgium reached 38.95 billion US dollars, up by 36.3 percent year-on-year. It shows again that China-Belgium and China-Europe business relations enjoy extensive common interest and broad cooperation space. Win-win cooperation is the only right choice for us. It is hoped that Belgian businesses will stay confident in China’s high-quality development, understand China’s resolve for high-standard opening-up, and stay committed to China-Belgium mutual trust. The economic and trade ties between China and Belgium and between China and Europe are fundamentally win-win, not where one wins at the expense of the other. Politicizing economy and trade, decoupling and building up walls will only hurt the global industrial and supply chains, and undermine our cooperation basis and common interests. Chinese and Belgian businesses need to continue to play the role of a bridge so that sectors from China and Belgium can have an objective and reasonable view about each other, make our cooperation story better heard, contribute to a new chapter of China-Belgium practical cooperation and jointly create a good atmosphere for practical cooperation between China and Europe and China and Belgium. 

Chairman Dewit thanked the Chinese Embassy in Belgium for its strong support to the BCECC over the years and stressed that the BCECC will continue to help Belgian and Chinese businesses to expand in each other’s market. President Saive congratulated China on hosting successfully the Beijing Winter Olympics and expressed the readiness to further promote sport exchanges and cooperation between Belgium and China.