Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country is ready to work with European Union leaders to expand mutual opening-up and properly handle frictions and differences, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday.
The comments came on the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and the EU, as both work to strengthen ties amid uncertainty in global trade fueled by comprehensive US tariffs.
Xi did not mention the United States in his remarks. However, Beijing has been working to strengthen economic and political ties with Europe in an effort to limit the damage caused by President Donald Trump's tariffs, which hit most of China's exports to the world's largest economy.
“Healthy and stable ties between China and the EU not only promote mutual achievements, but also enlighten the world,” he said.
China seeks to strengthen ties with the European Union
Xi also called on the EU to jointly safeguard fairness and justice and oppose unilateral bullying, describing their relations as one of the most influential in the world, Xinhua added.
In addition, China said it would welcome visits from European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The visits would take place at an appropriate time. Both sides plan to jointly hold a new round of leaders' meetings.
Meanwhile, China and the EU will hold high-level dialogues on strategy, economy and trade. They will also discuss green development and digitalization. These topics will be part of a series of events planned for this year, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
The ministry also confirmed that China and the European Parliament have decided to liberalize mutual exchanges.
Last week, the EU said China would suspend sanctions against members of the European Parliament and its human rights subcommittee. The EU imposed sanctions in 2021 over measures against Chinese officials accused of mass detention of Muslim Uighurs in the Xinjiang region.
"Under the current circumstances, both sides believe that it is very important for China and Europe to strengthen dialogue and cooperation," Lin told reporters.
Source: Xiuhao Chen, Liz Lee and Shi Bu | Notícias Agrícolas
