The European Union and China will strengthen their trade relationship and work toward opening up China’s economy for foreign investors. On surrendering intellectual property to gain access to China’s market, both sides have agreed there should not be a forced transfer of technology. The EU and China have agreed to a joint study on improving the inter-connectedness of rail systems. Both have also stressed a shared commitment to a rules-based system.

The EU has grown increasingly concerned about Chinese state-led companies buying key European assets while the level of market openness is not reciprocated in China. Politicians and businesses in the EU and the United States have criticized China for forcing foreign companies to hand over intellectual property in order to gain access to China’s economy — which is the second largest in the world.

The EU is China’s biggest trading partner. China is the bloc’s second-biggest trading partner, coming in only after the US. The US seemed to be the protectionist elephant in the room throughout the EU’s negotiation process with the Chinese. The US, by virtue of its heavy tariffs, has more muscle and may yet extract more in the way of hard concessions from China than the EU, which has mainly won more in political commitments.