BEIJING, May 8, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- China and
France should uphold mutual
benefits, jointly oppose acts of "decoupling" and disrupting
industrial and supply chains, and say no together to building
barriers, President Xi Jinping made the remarks on Monday when
holding talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in
Paris.
China and France should uphold independence and jointly
fend off a "new Cold War" or bloc confrontation, Xi said, the
Xinhua News Agency reported. Xi also attended a welcome ceremony
held by Macron on Monday.
Earlier on the day, Xi attended a China-France-EU trilateral meeting with
President Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at Elysee Palace.
In a signed article published Sunday in French media Le Figaro,
Xi said we live in a world that is far from being tranquil and is
once again facing a multitude of risks. China is ready to work with France in the spirit that guided the
establishment of our diplomatic ties to forge a stronger
comprehensive strategic partnership between our two countries and
make new contributions to stronger cooperation of the global
community.
Strategic guidance
Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs
at the Renmin University of China,
told the Global Times on Monday that Xi's visit to France marks the climax of China's diplomacy toward Europe this year. And EU is crucial in the
process of promoting political multipolarity and economic
globalization.
On Tuesday, Macron will take Xi to the Pyrenees, a mountainous
region dear to the French President as the birthplace of his
maternal grandmother, according to Reuters.
Such a special arrangement by Macron has the meaning of courtesy
and shows the special relationship between the two heads of state,
as well as a kind of frankness, analysts said.
Tian Dewen, deputy director of
the Institute of European Studies of Chinese Academy of Social
Sciences, told the Global Times that in the past five years,
China-EU relations have encountered difficulties, but China-France
relations have been relatively stable. This is directly related to
the Macron government's implementation of positive and pragmatic
relations with China.
China is a very important
external force for France and
Europe to realize strategic
autonomy, and it can certainly consolidate France's leading position in Europe if it can maintain a communicative and
interactive relationship with China, experts said.
Seeking consensus
China regards Europe as a priority of its major-country
diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, and an important partner in
achieving Chinese modernization, Xi said at China-France-EU trilateral meeting held
earlier on Monday.
As the world enters a new period of turbulence and
transformation, China and the EU,
as two major forces in the world, should continue to see each other
as partners, stay committed to dialogue and cooperation, deepen
strategic communication, enhance strategic mutual trust, build
strategic consensus, carry out strategic coordination, work for
steady and sound growth of China-EU ties, and continue making new
contributions to world peace and development, Xi said.
According to AFP, Macron told Xi that coordination with
Beijing on "major crises"
including Ukraine and the
Middle East was "absolutely
decisive" and essential.
He Zhigao, a research fellow with the Institute of European
Studies from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said
that the trilateral meeting highlights an important opportunity for
China and Europe to strengthen high-level exchanges,
communicate on major issues, and enhance strategic consensus.
"By talking about some of the current challenges facing
China-Europe relations and the demands of both
sides, they can continue the stability and cooperation space of the
current relations, so that the relations will not slide into a new
Cold War. China-Europe relations now play a more important
role in shaping global order than ever," He told the Global
Times.
Von der Leyen said that it is
important that the EU maintains good relations with China, and this will determine whether global
challenges such as climate change and the Ukraine crisis can be better addressed.
Xi urged the two sides to properly address economic and trade
frictions through dialogue and consultation, and accommodate each
other's legitimate concerns.
Whether viewed from the perspective of comparative advantage or
global market demand, there is no such thing as "China's overcapacity problem," Xi said.
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SOURCE Global Times