Some 34 European diplomats recently completed a study tour of China in a special workshop organized by China's foreign ministry. They believe that China has produced healthy initiatives in democracy and that the efforts to expand cooperation between China and the EU in new areas can dispel ongoing uncertainties about the global economy.

Reporter: 32-year-old Samuel Morgan, a UK diplomat who mainly deals with China affairs in the foreign ministry, was very enthusiastic about the 13-day trip, which took him to east China's Zhejiang Province and the capital city of Beijing.

He said he had noticed that some private enterprises in Wenzhou in Zhejiang Province have a strong presence in the European market as well as the UK. The fact that Wenzhou-based entrepreneurs are leading a wave of Chinese enterprises to go global has caused Samuel Morgan to consider that a solution to Europe's debt crisis may lie in exploring more opportunities for trade and investment between China and the Europe.

"Another good example is investment into infrastructure. The foreign direct investments from China to the EU at the moment are only a small percentage of the total investment. We've seen how Chinese companies are well placed to carry out further more investments along those lines, so that's an area for expansion."

In addition to Wenzhou, the European diplomats were also taken to Wenling, another city in Zhejiang, where they observed a democratic forum between local government officials and dozens of representatives from local villages. The forum focused on the relocation of a village.

Michal Swboda, a diplomat from the Czech Republic, is in charge of China affairs. He spoke about what he learned from the democratic forum.

"We had a chance to talk with the people, who are, for example, in Wenling, organizing this democratic forum. I believe that this forum and this initiative are important to continue. It's some form of democracy, which has given citizens a chance to participate more actively."

To mark the completion of this China tour, a ceremony with Chinese vice-foreign minister Song Tao was held on Wednesday evening in Beijing.

Milena Sofranac from Montenegro speaks on behalf of the European diplomats at the event. She said that this is her first tour in China and that visiting local communities in Beijing helped improve her understanding of the country's economic development and democratic progress.

"We visited some of the communities. I believe that the Chinese have made significant progress in terms of economic roads and social welfare."

Themed "Dynamic China", the workshop, which runs from June 16 to 28 this year, was designed to enable the diplomats from Europe to witness the country's modern development.

The workshop of European diplomats was first held in 2005 by the Chinese Foreign Ministry and developed into an annual event that provides a platform for European diplomats to obtain an encompassing view of China's development in order to encourage them to improve relations with China.