China will work with EU to resume in-person exchanges

BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Thursday said China stands ready to work with the EU to fully resume in-person exchanges at all levels and galvanize mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields.

Spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the remarks at a daily news briefing when asked to comment on recent reports that the latest poll by the European Council on Foreign Relations shows that the prevailing view is that China is a "necessary partner."

Besides, it is reported that many European leaders, including President of the European Council Charles Michel, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, have recently said that "decoupling" from China is neither viable nor desirable, and underlined the importance of maintaining contact and cooperation with China.

Noting China and the EU are two major forces, massive markets, and vital civilizations in a multi-polar world, Wang said the China-EU relations, rooted in solid public support, extensive mutual interests, and similar strategic aspirations, have withstood the test of time and shown strong resilience and potential.

Since early this year, the two sides have maintained close high-level exchanges, Wang said, adding that leaders of the two sides had in-depth communication and reached common understandings on enhancing strategic mutual trust, deepening practical cooperation, stepping up international coordination, and managing differences appropriately.

"As the poll shows, China and the EU are partners, not rivals," Wang said.

Wang said that China stands ready to work with the EU to deliver on the common understandings of the leaders, keep to the right direction and underlining tone of China-EU relations, cement the positive momentum of growth of ties, fully resume in-person exchanges at all levels, galvanize mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields to enrich and expand the dimensions of China-EU cooperation and provide more stability and certainty for a volatile and turbulent world.