If the European Union wants to emerge from crisis and be competitive in the world, it needs to carry out structural reforms in the pension and social spheres, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has said.

"Europe should make structural changes. If the European Union wants not only to emerge from crisis, but also to be competitive in the 21st century, it's necessary to make huge changes that will help our private sector become more competitive. This means that it's necessary to carry out pension reform, and reform of social security. We must create new conditions for cooperation between the public and private sectors, so that the rules are predictable," he said at a meeting with students in Dnipropetrovsk on Tuesday.

Blair also called for the creation of such conditions under which small and medium business will successfully develop in Europe.

Blair briefed students on seven key lessons for the successful development of countries. He said that they included effective government, the activities of which should be based on "effectiveness, rather than a leftist or rightist ideology," in making and implementing decisions. In addition, the issue concerns a free and open country, i.e. democracy, high-quality education, the rule of law (fair court rulings), and a tolerant attitude toward people of other religions, nationalities and cultures.

Blair also said that in a few years China, with its population of 1.3 billion people, would have "the largest economy in the world."

"China is demonstrating the largest geopolitical rise in the 21st century," he said.