Free trade, amity highlighted in Sino-Spanish relationship

President Xi Jinping shakes hands with visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Beijing on Monday. [FENG YONGBIN/CHINA DAILY]

Market opening-up, new energy cooperation and multilateralism were highlighted in talks between President Xi Jinping and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Beijing on Monday.

At the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Sanchez expressed his pleasure at visiting China again after his previous trip last year, saying that this shows the closeness of the two countries' ties.

Xi said the two sides should work together for growth in high-technology areas such as artificial intelligence, the digital economy and new energy to achieve mutual benefits and win-win results.

During the visit, the two sides signed a number of cooperative agreements in areas including green development.

The Spanish leader told Xi that this showcases the huge potential and bright prospects for cooperation between the two sides.

Last year, bilateral trade reached $48.6 billion, with China becoming Spain's top trade partner outside the European Union, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

Xi said Beijing hopes that Madrid will remain committed to providing a fair, equitable, safe and nondiscriminatory business environment for Chinese investors.

Sanchez said Spain is willing to provide a favorable environment for Chinese enterprises, and that it supports the principle of free trade and market opening and would not agree to a trade war.

As next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the two countries establishing a comprehensive strategic partnership, China and Spain should keep enriching this partnership to build "a long-term and stable relationship that is full of strategic certainty", Xi said.

Sanchez said Spain views relations with China from a strategic perspective, firmly pursues the one-China policy and sees itself as China's trustworthy partner.

Next year will also mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the EU.

Regarding China-EU ties, Xi said Beijing appreciates Madrid's vigorous push for China-EU exchanges and cooperation.

Beijing is willing to work with the EU to take stock of the successful experience of the relationship's development, and to advance the relationship steadily featuring self-reliance, mutual achievement and benefit to the world, Xi said, adding that Spain should further play a constructive role in this regard.

Spain is willing to continue to play an active role in promoting the healthy development of EU-China relations, Sanchez said.

The two sides also exchanged views on issues such as the Ukraine crisis and the Palestine-Israel conflict.

Xi noted that China and Spain are both countries with a sense of duty and mission, and both advocate multilateralism and free trade.

Beijing is willing to expand third-party market cooperation with Madrid toward the Global South and strengthen communication and cooperation in international organizations, he said.

Sanchez said that China is a key player in maintaining world peace and development, and it plays an important and constructive role in resolving major international and regional issues.

Sanchez, whose official visit to China will last from Sunday to Wednesday, also met with Premier Li Qiang on Monday.

China, Norway pledge to build on friendship, expand cooperation

President Xi Jinping shakes hands with visiting Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store in Beijing on Monday. [YIN BOGU/XINHUA]

President Xi Jinping called on Monday for further promoting friendship and cooperation between China and Norway, and he expressed the hope that Oslo would play a positive role in promoting the sound and stable development of relations between China and Europe.

He made the remarks during a meeting in Beijing with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store. Store is making a three-day official visit to China that started on Monday, at the invitation of Premier Li Qiang.

Xi emphasized the friendship between the Chinese and Norwegian people since the two countries established diplomatic relations 70 years ago, and said that further developing friendly cooperation between China and Norway aligns with the fundamental interests of both countries as well as the trend of closer interconnection and a shared future among nations worldwide.

He reaffirmed the nation's commitment to peaceful development, saying that China is dedicated to deepening reform comprehensively and advancing Chinese modernization to inject stability and certainty into the changing world, and to create more opportunities for common development among nations.

Historical experience shows that in order to maintain the stable and healthy development of bilateral relations between two countries, the most important thing is to adhere to mutual respect and seek common ground while shelving differences, he said, highlighting the need to respect each other's core interests and accommodate each other's major concerns.

Noting that China and Norway have strong economic complementarity, Xi called on both nations to leverage their respective strengths to expand practical cooperation in areas such as green development, environmental protection, energy transition, agriculture, fisheries and electric vehicles, and to enhance collaboration in education, science and technology, culture, tourism and winter sports.

China and Norway share a broad consensus on global challenges in terms of maintaining world peace and security, responding to climate change and preserving biodiversity, he said.

He expressed China's willingness to enhance communication and collaboration with Norway in multilateral platforms including the United Nations, as well as to advocate true multilateralism to promote inclusive economic globalization and a more equal and orderly multipolar world.

Store noted that Norway was one of the first Nordic countries to establish diplomatic relations with New China. He said that over the past 70 years, Norway-China relations have developed well, and are characterized by dialogue and cooperation based on mutual respect.

Norway respects China's sovereignty, adheres to the one-China policy, and is committed to respecting each other's core interests and major concerns, Store said. He added that his country wants to work with China to learn from each other, share experiences and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results.

He said that Norway looks forward to expanding cooperation with China, particularly in green development, climate change, artificial intelligence and other fields.

The two sides exchanged views on the Ukraine crisis. Xi reiterated China's support for efforts conducive to a peaceful resolution of the crisis, and said that Beijing will continue to facilitate peace talks and play a constructive role in promoting a political solution to the crisis.