China urges EU cooperation over ‘bloc confrontation’ in bid to warm relations
- Foreign minister touts ‘mutually beneficial’ ties with European countries during ‘two sessions’ press conference
- Wang Yi insists Beijing and Brussels have ‘no fundamental conflict of interest’ as EU pivots to ‘de-risk’
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called on Europe to choose “mutually beneficial cooperation” over “bloc confrontation”, a phrase Beijing often uses to describe Washington’s effort to rally allies amid rising US-China competition.
“As long as China and Europe cooperate in mutually beneficial ways, there will be no room for bloc confrontation,” he said on Thursday during an annual foreign policy press conference at the country’s “two sessions”.
He added that the European Union and China should jointly defend multilateralism and reject “anti-globalisation”.
Wang said he hoped relations with Europe will have a “green light all the way”, describing the continent as a “partner” instead of a competitor or rival.
“There is no fundamental conflict of interest between China and Europe, nor is there any geostrategic contradiction. The common interests of both sides far outweigh their differences,” Wang said.