Wang Yi: China, UK should enhance exchanges and cooperation, properly handle differences

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday called on China and the UK to strengthen exchanges and cooperation, properly handle differences and conflicts, and push China-UK relations back to the right track of healthy and stable development.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks while meeting with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

Amid the current global challenges such as the emergence of the Cold War mentality, rampant protectionism and the slow economic recovery, China and the UK, both permanent members of the UN Security Council, should strengthen strategic communication and play their due role in promoting security and maintaining peace, Wang said.

Both sides should work together to broaden the convergence of interests, strengthen exchanges and cooperation, as well as properly handle differences and conflicts, which is in line with the fundamental and long-term interests of both countries and is also the common expectation of the international community, he added.

For his part, Cameron said the UK is willing to view UK-China relations from a strategic perspective, develop more constructive bilateral relations with China, and manage differences and resolve problems in a mutually respectful manner.

The UK will continue to promote cooperation in areas that serve the common interests of both sides, and looks forward to strengthening dialogue with China on areas including renewable energy, economy, trade and education, Cameron said, calling on the two countries to safeguard peace and security.

Advocating and practicing true multilateralism, China firmly upholds the international system with the UN at its core, the basic norms governing international relations with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter as its core, and the international order based on international law, Wang added.

(Cover: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron on the sidelines of the ongoing Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, February 16, 2024. /Xinhua)