Xi, Macron reach important consensus on China-France cooperation in next stage

A batch of 1 million donated medical masks from China arrives at the Liege airport in Belgium on March 18, 2020, en route to France. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron reached important consensus on China-France cooperation in the next stage during a phone conversation on Wednesday evening.

Amid increasing instability and uncertainty, the contemporary world calls for more responsibilities of major countries, Xi pointed out.

Calling "independence, mutual understanding, foresight, mutual benefit and win-win outcomes" as the original aspiration of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France, Xi noted that it is an important consensus of the two countries to uphold multilateralism, safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core and maintain the international order based on international convention.

The two countries, he said, should stay true to their original aspiration, adhere to their consensus, firmly hold the steering wheel of China-France relations, strengthen exchanges, deepen cooperation, maintain close communication and coordination on major international and regional issues, so as to push for greater development of the bilateral relations.

Xi stressed that China has full confidence in its own path, theory, system and culture, and respects the development path independently chosen by the people of other countries.

Countries with different social systems are able to respect each other, coexist peacefully and seek common development, he said.

Pointing out that China-EU cooperation is gaining more global and strategic significance under the new circumstances, the Chinese president said no matter how the international situation changes, China is committed to promoting the healthy and stable development of China-EU relations and hopes that the EU will implement a positive policy towards China.

He also called for joint efforts to speed up negotiations on a China-EU investment agreement, make the China-EU high-level dialogue on environment and climate as well as digital cooperation a success and take China-EU relations to a new level.

For his part, Macron said France and China have conducted sound cooperation in the fight against COVID-19, and promoted exchanges and cooperation in various fields in an all-round way.

With independence as its traditional foreign policy virtue, France attaches great importance to developing relations with China, and is ready to work with China to deepen the bilateral cooperation as well as cooperation between the EU and China, he said, adding that he hopes the EU-China investment agreement will be reached as soon as possible.

France appreciates China's important contribution to reaching the Paris Agreement on climate change, as well as its key role in developing COVID-19 vaccines and relieving debt, especially its support for developing countries, Macron said.

France is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with China on major global and regional issues such as climate change, public health and cooperation with African countries, Macron said, adding he hopes to visit China again in due course.

The two heads of state held discussions on the bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the next stage, reached a number of important consensus and instructed relevant departments of the two countries to step up implementation in:

1. Welcoming the participation of the leaders of the legislative bodies of the two countries in the upcoming 11th meeting of the regular inter-parliamentary exchange mechanism, which will be held via video conference for the first time.

2. Carrying out more cooperation in such fields as biomedicine, biological breeding, moon and Mars exploration and satellite research and development.

3. Enhancing cooperation on customs inspection and quarantine through hotlines at border posts and other mechanisms to ensure the stability of supply chains.

4. Speeding up technical consultations on regional management of African swine fever despite the impacts of COVID-19 in order to achieve substantial results on the cooperation agreement as soon as possible.

5. Taking the opportunity of the Winter Olympic Games Beijing 2022 and the Olympic Games Paris 2024 to increase Olympic and people-to-people exchanges and cooperation, so as to strengthen mutual understanding and friendship.

6. Welcoming the upcoming official entry into force of the China-EU agreement on geographical indications at the beginning of 2021 and supporting the introduction of quality and brand-name Chinese and French agri-food products such as tea, wine and cheese into each other's households.

7. Actively participating in the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator Initiative and the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access Facility, increasing support for developing countries and ensuring that vaccines are a public good that is effectively accessible and affordable for all people around the world.

8. Jointly upholding multilateralism and tackling climate change, making the Climate Ambition Summit on Dec. 12 and the One Planet Summit in January 2021 a success, mobilizing the international community to participate more actively in the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the 26th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the 7th International Union for Conservation of Nature World Conservation Congress, and promoting the aforementioned important international agenda to achieve positive results.

The two sides also exchanged views on the Iranian nuclear issue and Antarctic marine protection.