Xi Jinping Holds Talks with Macron

On the afternoon of monday, Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris.

President Xi expressed his delight in making the third state visit to France upon invitation on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of China-France relations. The two sides should stay committed to the spirit that guided the establishment of their diplomatic ties, namely, independence, mutual understanding, long-term vision and mutual benefit, and enrich it with new features of the new era. As the world goes through transformation and turbulence not seen in a century, China and France should uphold independence and jointly prevent a new cold war or bloc confrontation; they should continue to understand each other and jointly promote harmonious coexistence in a colorful world; they should take a long view and work together for an equal and orderly multipolar world; and they should pursue win-win cooperation and jointly oppose decoupling, cutting off supply chains or erecting walls and barriers.

President Xi expressed his delight in making the third state visit to France at the 60th anniversary of China-France relations. The precious 60-year journey of the China-France relationship will better inform us about how toembark on the next 60 years. As the world goes through transformation not seen in a century, the two sides should stay committed to independence, mutual understanding, long-term vision, and mutual benefit, whichrepresent the spirit that guided the establishment of their diplomatic ties. They should also enrich it with new features of the new era, build a China-France relationship in the new era characterized by mutual trust, stability, commitment to fundamental principles while breaking new ground, and a strong sense of responsibility. The two sides shouldupholdindependence and jointly prevent a new cold war or bloc confrontation; they should continue to understand each other and jointly promote harmonious coexistence in a colorful world; they should take a long view and work together for an equal and orderly multipolar world; and they should pursue win-win cooperation and jointly oppose decoupling and cutting off supply chains.

President Xi stressed that China is ready to maintain strategic communication with France, respect each other’s core interests, consolidate the strategic stability of the bilateral relations, unleash the great potential of mutually beneficial cooperation, and strive for upward balance in bilateral trade. China is ready to import more high-quality products from France and enable the “French farm to Chinese dining table” mechanism to deliver more practical outcomes. He also expressed the hope for France to export more high-tech products with high added value to China. The two sidesshould better synergize their development strategies, deepen cooperation in areas of traditional strength such as aerospace and aviation, and step upcooperation on nuclear energy, innovation and finance,and expand cooperation in emerging areas such as green energy, smart manufacturing, biomedicine and artificial intelligence (AI). China has fully opened up its manufacturing sector, and will move faster to expand market access in the service sector such as telecommunication and medical services. Chinawelcomes investment by more French companies and also hopes thatFrancewill provide a good business environment and stable development expectation for the investment and cooperation by Chinese companies in France.

President Xi emphasized that China and France, as major countries with rich cultures, should accelerate people-to-people exchanges, continue to organize successful events including the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism, and actively advance cooperation on joint protection and restoration of cultural heritage and pairing between world heritage sites. China welcomes visits by more friends from France and willextend the short-stay visa-exemption policy for citizens from 12 countries including France to the end of 2025, bring the total number of French students in China to more than 10,000, and double the number of young Europeans on exchange programs to China in the next three years. China supports France in hosting a great Paris 2024 Olympic Games, to which China will send a strong delegation. China is ready to deepen cooperation with France in areas such as climate response and biodiversity. China supports France in hosting a successful U.N. Ocean Conference, and encourages partnerships between relevant national parks and natural reserves of the two countries. China is also willing to increase dialogue and communication with France in areas including AI governance and the reform of the international financial system.

President Macron noted that France and China will celebrate the 60th anniversary of their diplomatic relations this year. The two countries enjoy a friendly relationship and productive cooperation regarding not just cutting-edge technologies but also global issues such as climate change and marine biodiversity. During President Xi’s visit, the two sides signed many cooperation agreements, which again showcased the potential and prospects of France-China cooperation. The world now faces many pressing challenges, and the profound and richFrance-China relationshipis at a critical juncture of building on the past and looking to the future. The two sides, through mutual respect, a long-term perspective and strengthened cooperation, will play an important and positive role in addressing global challenges and opposing any logic of bloc confrontation. France would like to have closer economic ties and multilateral communication and collaboration with China, and work for more outcomes in the France-China strategic partnership. France hopes to export more agricultural products to China. At the same time, it will continue to open its market to China, and will not adopt discriminatory policies against Chinese companies. France welcomes investment and cooperation by more Chinese companies, including high-tech firms. France is ready to step up cooperation with China in such areas as aerospace and aviation, and nuclear energy for civilian use, and jointly hold the France-China Year of Culture and Tourism activities. France welcomes Chinese delegation to the Paris Olympic Games. France is willing to stay in close communication and cooperation with China on global issues including climate change, biodiversity protection, and AI, and jointly uphold multilateralism, the U.N. Charter and international law. 

The two sides also had an in-depth exchange of views on international and regional issues of mutual interest including the Ukraine crisis and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

President Xi pointed out that today’s world is far from being tranquil. China and France, as permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, should speak out for peaceful settlement of hotspot issues and contribute to a world of lasting peace and common security. China will work with France to advocate, on the occasion of the Paris Olympic Games, a cessation of hostilities around the world during the Games. 

The two sides issued four joint statements on the situation in the Middle East, on AI and global governance, on biodiversity and oceans, and on agricultural exchanges and cooperation.Close to 20bilateral cooperation documents were signed in such areas as green development, aviation, agrifood, commerce and people-to-people exchanges.

After the talks, President Xi and President Macron held a joint meeting with the press.

On the evening, President Emmanuel Macron and Madame Brigitte Macron held a welcoming banquet for President Xi Jinping and Madame Peng Liyuanat the Elysées Palace. 

Cai Qi and Wang Yi, among others,were present at the events.