China urges Europe to help jointly resolve conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine
“Squeezing the security space of other countries, supporting one side while ignoring the legitimate demands of the other side will only lead to regional imbalance and escalation of conflicts.
“China and Europe should devote [effort] to mediate conflicts and ease tensions.”
He also noted that big international risks such as the sluggish economic recovery and the revival of a cold-war mentality made it necessary for China and Germany to jointly defend global order and multilateralism.
The talks follow a series of dialogues between senior officials in China and Europe in recent weeks to improve engagement and address global challenges.
China, which assumed the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council this month, will promote resolutions as soon as possible to “defend the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people” and ease the crisis.
A weekly curated round-up of social, political and economic stories from China and how they impact the world.
That was the commitment Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi gave his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud in a phone call on Friday.
Wang also said Beijing was ready to increase exchanges and coordination with Riyadh and other countries to promote “more authoritative” international conferences to reach new consensus for the two-state solution to resolve the conflict.
03:21
Dozens killed as Gaza’s largest refugee camp hit by Israeli air strike targeting ‘Hamas terrorists’
Dozens killed as Gaza’s largest refugee camp hit by Israeli air strike targeting ‘Hamas terrorists’
During the talks on Friday, Xi called on Germany to play a role in maintaining healthy China-Europe relations.
“Sino-European relations have a bearing on the stability of the world and the prosperity of the Asian and European continents, and deserve to be maintained and developed with all efforts by both sides,” Xi said.
“China regards Europe as a comprehensive strategic partner and an important pole in multipolarity. We hope that Germany will push the EU to uphold the principles of marketisation and fairness, and work with China to safeguard fair market competition and free trade and ensure global industrial and supply chains.”
03:24
Terrifying moments as Israeli woman taken hostage by Hamas militants
He also said both countries could hold their first dialogue on climate change and green transformation “as soon as possible” and deepen cooperation on environmental protection and biodiversity.
Xi also played up the market potential of the world’s second largest-economy, saying it offered big opportunities for German companies. In return, Berlin should allow “high-level” market access to Chinese investment there, he said.
Last year, trade volume between China and Germany increased by a surprising 21 per cent year on year to €191 billion (US$214.5 billion). The value of Germany’s imports from China increased by around 30 per cent, but the value of its exports to China rose by only 3.1 per cent.
Berlin has yet to release a statement about the video call.