Netherlands keen to deepen comprehensive relationship with China

China should use the Netherlands as the gateway to Europe, and itcould be the gateway for the Netherlands to Asia, said Bert Koenders, the kingdom's foreign affairs minister.

Koenders spent Thursday and Friday in Beijing, meeting with his Chinese counterparts to discuss deepening the countries'bilateral relationship.

"China is a key partner for the Netherlands; you are the second trade partner for us outside Europe and we are the third for you inside Europe," he said.

In 2014, China and Netherlands bilateral trade exceeded 74.3 billion dollars, 5.9 percent up from 2013.

Koenders said both parties should intensify and innovate their economic relationship in the future, and also collaborate more in sectors such as sustainable urbanizationand innovation. Water treatment, a key issue for China, and coping with the challenges of climate change also would be important.

Netherlands will take the EU's rotating presidency next year. Koenders said he is very happy about the news that China will invest in the European Commission's 315 billion euro ($354.8 billion) investment plan for 2015-17. He said that the Netherlands has an "innovative, value-added and productive economy". They would also look for Chinese capital to invest more in Netherlands.

Koenders also emphasized the deepening political cooperation between the two countries. He reckons that China's increasing influence in the world makes the possibility for international public good and peacekeeping. China is already the biggest contributor of peacekeeping troops among the permanent members of the UN's Security Council. Both countries have worked together at peacekeeping efforts in many conflict areas in the past few years, such as in the anti-piracy mission in Somalia, and he would like to see more in the future.

In regard to people to people contact the Netherlands welcomed 255,000 Chinese tourists last year and would like to attract more.