Chinese premier extends congratulations to new French PM

BEIJING, May 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday congratulated Elisabeth Borne on her appointment as French prime minister.

In his congratulatory message, Li said that having kept up sound momentum for the development of bilateral relations over the past years, China and France have been deepening cooperation and exchanges in economy, trade, investment, science, education, transportation, culture, people-to-people exchanges and other fields.

The two sides have joined hands to tackle global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and biodiversity conservation, which not only benefits the two countries and their people, but also contributes to world peace, stability and prosperity, Li said.

The recent phone conversation between the two heads of state has vigorously promoted the development of China-France relations, he noted, adding that the two countries are permanent members of the UN Security Council, and China attaches great importance to relations with France.

The Chinese premier voiced readiness to work with Borne to push for new achievements in China-France cooperation in various fields and make fresh contributions to the sound development of China-EU relations.