China-France relations: Beijing eager to make up for lost time after Covid pandemic
- Foreign Minister Wang Yi tells his French counterpart Catherine Colonna that Beijing hopes France will take a leading role in relations between China and the EU
- China has stepped up its engagement with France this year as Brussels and Germany unveil plans to de-risk relations
China has promised to restart exchanges with France “in all fields and at all levels” to make up for lost time after the Covid-19 pandemic and bring relations to “new heights”.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who spoke to his French counterpart Catherine Colonna by phone on Friday, also said that Beijing hoped France would play “a leading role” in promoting the European Union’s strategic autonomy and relations with China.
“Since the beginning of the year, China-France relations have maintained a good development trend … China is willing to take this opportunity with France to fully restart exchanges in all fields and at all levels to make up for the losses caused by the pandemic,” Wang said.
“[China] would like to take the China-France comprehensive strategic partnership to new heights.”
Colonna said France values its friendship with China, and will deepen cooperation to build “mutually beneficial and win-win” relations, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
She added that both France and the EU will oppose “division and decoupling” and expressed her hopes for a “multipolar, balanced and peaceful world”.