STRASBOURG - European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Tuesday that cooperation with China is pivotal in the face of global challenges.

"As two global powers we both understand that our cooperation is essential to address the main challenges we face," Mogherini told the members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in a meeting in Strasbourg, France.

To preserve global multilateral systems in order to deal with global issues more effectively, "engagement with China is an absolute must," she said.

Mogherini said that cooperation on issues where the EU and China do not share the same objectives could still be beneficial. "Even when our starting points are not the same, there is still room for working together for a win-win situation," she said.

"We should not be afraid of a more proactive and more confident China," she said. "We could work together with China to make the global economic system more just and fair."

"We know that at this moment in world history cooperation and engagement are simply the smartest choice and we know that on some global and some regional issues, if the European Union and China work together, it will make a difference in the world," she said.