Czech-Chinese relations face turning point: Czech PM

Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said here on Thursday that the relations between the Czech Republic and China is bracing for "strategic partnership."

"This year is really a turning point in Czech-Chinese relations because our government has changed attitude towards China," Sobotka said in an interview with Xinhua.

"I think we start new period of, lets say, strategic partnership."

Sobotka made the remarks while the 2nd Local Leaders Meeting of China and Central and Eastern European (CEE) Countries is being held in Prague.

CEE countries include Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia.

Attaching great importance to cooperation with China, Sobotka stressed that there exists a great potential for the improvement of such cooperation.

Officials of the two countries have "discussed specific ways, specific opportunities in industry, tourism, healthcare, spa, science, research and development," he noted.

Thanks to years of efforts by China and the Czech Republic, two-way trade between the two countries stood at 9.45 billion U.S. dollars by 2013.

The latter is now the second largest trading partner of China in CEE, according to the Economic and Commercial Office of the Chinese embassy in Prague.

On cooperation between CEE countries and China, Sobotka believed that the Czech Republic is in a position of advantage as "it is very stable from political, economical and legislative point of view."