BRUSSELS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- The relations between China and the European Union (EU) are crucial in the era of Donald Trump, when the U.S. administration is set to pursue America's interest first and distancing itself from global economic leadership, said European experts.

From a global perspective, China-EU ties are crucial in the era of Trump, Alicia Garcia-Herrero, a senior research fellow in Brussels-based think tank Bruegel and chief economist for Asia of investment management firm Natixis, said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

"The U.S. administration is simply too erratic to be trusted and is set to pursue America's interest first," she said. "EU and China need to take care of global issues and try to keep the world in the multilateral track."

"The China-EU relations were one of the most important trade and investment relations in the world, with a significant impact on economic performance," Fredrik Erixon, director of Brussels-based think tank European Center for International Political Economy, told Xinhua.

"If the relations sour, everyone will suffer; if they flourish, we will all benefit," Erixon said.

"Now that protectionism is increasing and we are seeing a U.S. distancing itself from global economic leadership and openness, the protection of the free trade system is ever more important," he said, "It is up to China and Europe to mount the defense of this system."

In 2017, the EU became more protectionist by increasingly enhancing its trade defense tools. It adopted new anti-dumping rules which do not virtually cease the so-called "analogue country" methodology used in anti-dumping investigations against China in violation of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.

Looking ahead, the expert said more needs to be done on both sides to improve trade talks.

"Hopefully there is a positive scenario where continued reforms in China and more political stability in Europe will bring the two sides close together and enable the start of proper trade negotiations between them," said Erixon.