On May 6, 1975, China and the European Economic Community, which comprised Western European countries at the time, established diplomatic relations, and in a few days they will observe the 40th anniversary of that historic occasion.

China and the European Union (formed out of the EEC in 1993) have more than enough reason to celebrate the success of their 40-year relationship. Just take their trade volume as an example. It has soared from $2.4 billion in 1975 to $615 billion in 2014, and both sides have plans to increase it to $1 trillion by 2020.

Going by their interdependence, China and the EU have greatly contributed to each other's economic success. In fact, this is exactly what President Xi Jinping emphasized last year. And it's because of this interdependence that the majority of the EU's 28 member states have applied to become or have already joined the China-proposed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank as founding members.