rade as well as international affairs, a Croatian political analyst said.

ZAGREB, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Decoupling from China is neither viable nor desirable for Europe, which is a close economic and trade partner of China, said Kresimir Macan, a Croatian political analyst, in an interview with Xinhua.

Macan echoed the statement of European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France on April 18, when she declared that "decoupling is clearly not viable, desirable or even practical for Europe."

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During her speech, the EC president said China"s international and economic status, as well as Europe"s own interests, make it all the more important for Europe to properly manage its relations with China. Europe must "carve out our own distinct European approach that also leaves space for us to cooperate with other partners," she said.

As Europe and China are close economic and trade partners, it is in the interests of Europe to take such a stand, Macan said, adding that both Europe and China need each other in economic and trade as well as international affairs.

This photo taken on Nov. 6, 2022 shows a new energy vehicle of German automaker Mercedes-Benz at the automobile exhibition area of the fifth China International Import Expo (CIIE) at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) in east China"s Shanghai. (Xinhua/Jin Haoyuan)

China was the largest source of EU imports and the third-largest buyer of EU goods in 2022, with total bilateral imports and exports reaching 856.3 billion euros (959.96 billion U.S. dollars), according to Eurostat, highlighting China"s economic significance to Europe. The Russia-Ukraine conflict, which broke out in February last year, and the COVID-19 pandemic have made China a more crucial trade partner to the EU.

Macan hailed China"s economic growth rate of 4.5 percent in the first quarter of this year, noting that the World Bank has raised China"s economic growth rate to 5.1 percent in 2023, significantly higher than the bank"s January forecast of 4.3 percent, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has set China"s GDP growth rate at 5.2 percent this year, a substantial increase from last year"s 3 percent growth rate.

Photo taken on July 26, 2022 shows the booth of cosmetics giant L"Oreal in the French pavilion at the second China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) in Haikou, south China"s Hainan Province. (Xinhua/Guo Cheng)

In comparison, the IMF expects the global economic growth rate to drop from 3.4 percent in 2022 to 2.8 percent this year, and the U.S. economic growth rate is expected to slow down from 2.1 percent in 2022 to 1.6 percent this year and the EU down from 3.5 percent in 2022 to 0.8 percent this year.

"The Chinese economy will continue to grow, and I think that the future of the Chinese economy is bright," Macan said, adding that China will remain as a locomotive of the world economy.■