France is an important country in the European Union and China-France relations go beyond the two countries, which have global influence, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said.

Premier Li made the remarks in Beijing on Friday afternoon during a meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who came to Beijing to attend the 25th meeting of the Joint Committee of China-France Trade and Economic Cooperation. 

After 30 years of successful cooperation between China and France, breakthroughs have been made in the third-generation nuclear power cooperation this year, Li said.

He hailed that there is immense potential for win-win development between China and France and that China is willing to advance all-around practical cooperation with France.

China and France are both major economies and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, Li noted.

He also called on the two sides to make joint efforts to contribute to world stability, development and prosperity.

The French foreign minister said both China and France support multilateralism and that France wants to boost strategic communication and pragmatic cooperation with China.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his French counterpart earlier in Beijing on Thursday.

They expressed a strong wish to boost bilateral ties and vowed to work together to safeguard the multilateral trade system and rules of the World Trade Organization.