China looks to France to foster ‘positive’ and ‘pragmatic’ EU policy on Beijing
- In call with French leader’s diplomatic adviser, Chinese foreign minister plays up ‘independence’ and ‘autonomy’ of both countries
- Chinese president expected to visit France early next month to mark six decades of ties
The appeal – just days ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s expected trip Europe – was delivered by Foreign Minister Wang Yi in a phone call to the French president’s diplomatic adviser, Emmanuel Bonne, on Saturday.
“I hope the French side will push the EU to continue to pursue a positive and pragmatic policy towards China,” Wang said, according to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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Xi will reportedly visit France as early as next Sunday to celebrate 60 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries. Hungary has confirmed the Chinese president will visit on May 8-10 after a stopover at Serbia. China has yet to confirm the trip.
The trip is part of a flurry of exchanges between China and European countries as relations with the European Union come under intense strain from unprecedented trade imbalances and growing discontent in the bloc about lack of access to China’s market.
In addition, Chinese-made electric vehicles are under scrutiny amid concerns that state support is translating into a price advantage in the EU market.
