Wang Yi stresses importance of China-EU ties, calls for more personnel exchanges

As long as China and the European Union (EU) join hands together, there won't be division of the world, bloc confrontation or a "new Cold War," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks when meeting the press alongside French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna after their talks in Beijing.

Wang said China and the EU should adhere to an independence foreign policy, and deepen the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership.

"We will listen to the voices of the European business community, earnestly solve the problems of investors coming to China, continuously improve the level and capacity of services, and build an internationalized and rule-of-law business environment," he said.

The foreign minister added that the essence of China-EU cooperation is complementarity of advantages and mutual benefit.

China and EU should work together to enhance the reliability and stability of China-EU economic and trade relations, and jointly maintain a smooth and stable industrial chain and supply chain, he said.

China also expects to expand personnel exchanges with more European countries in order to deepen people-to-people exchanges as well as friendship, he said.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday that China is trialing visa-free travel for citizens from five European countries – France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain – along with Malaysia from December 1, 2023 to November 30, 2024. 

Wang said China is ready to work with France, which he described as a core power in the EU, to promote greater development of China-EU ties.

China and France will continue to strengthen cooperation in multilateral topics and jointly tackle global challenges, he added.