中文
By David Gosset
French President Emmanuel Macron is paying his fourth state visit to China – an encounter unfolding at a moment of profound global turbulence. Globalization is faltering; economic fragmentation is accelerating, and unilateralism is gaining new momentum. From the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) to the G20 Johannesburg Summit, the United States' retreat under Donald Trump from multilateral logic is increasingly evident, weakening the very institutions meant to manage global challenges.
In this shifting environment, cooperation between China and France – two permanent members of the UN Security Council and influential independent powers, each with its own strategic identity and international weight – carries renewed and unmistakable significance. Both are nuclear powers committed to non-proliferation, giving their partnership additional responsibility at a time when global security norms face mounting pressure.
Macron's visit is far more than a routine diplomatic exchange. It is a test of whether two major civilizational nations, historically inclined toward strategic autonomy, can help steady a world veering toward division. Beyond reinforcing bilateral ties, China and France today play an outsized role in defending multilateralism, safeguarding open cooperation, and pushing for long-overdue reforms in global governance.
For six decades, their partnership has never been limited to narrow transactional interests. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1964, the two countries have developed cooperation spanning culture, aerospace, nuclear energy, agriculture, and scientific research. These sectors remain essential to bilateral trade – exceeding $79 billion last year – but what gives Macron's visit its broader strategic weight is the rapid expansion of cooperation into emerging domains that will define the global economy of the coming decades.
Foremost among these domains is the green economy. China's unmatched deployment and industrialization of clean technologies, coupled with France's regulatory leadership and innovation capacity, create a natural and powerful synergy. Joint work in renewable energy, hydrogen, electric mobility, circular economy projects, and sustainable urban development can accelerate global transitions at a time when climate urgency demands not slogans but concrete solutions. Such cooperation is not only mutually advantageous; it also directly strengthens global climate governance at a moment when credible climate leadership is in short supply.
Artificial intelligence represents another strategic frontier where China and France have both the interest and the responsibility to collaborate. Universities, research institutions, and companies on both sides have already deepened exchanges. Yet as AI risks becoming a new arena of geopolitical rivalry, Paris and Beijing have the capacity to promote a more balanced approach – one that supports innovation while insisting on ethical standards, safety guarantees, and inclusive governance principles. Their cooperation on AI signals a broader message: High technology need not become the battlefield of the century; it can instead be a platform for shared progress.
This widening scope of cooperation underscores a larger point: Both countries fundamentally reject the logic of decoupling and oppose the dangerous drift toward bloc confrontation. In a world increasingly tempted by zero-sum thinking, their joint commitment to openness and dialogue carries real weight. It is also why Macron's visit is expected to generate substantive outcomes across diplomacy, economics, technology, and culture.
The timing is unusually propitious. China seeks stable, high-quality external partnerships to support its development and deepened opening – an objective reaffirmed in the recommendations for its 15th Five-Year Plan – while France remains committed to advancing Europe's strategic autonomy in an era of shifting geopolitical dynamics. Both sides share a desire to maintain predictability in international relations, even as volatility appears to be the new norm. Although Paris and Beijing may approach Putin's Russia from different perspectives, they converge on a crucial point: both want to see peace in Ukraine achieved as soon as possible. Strengthened China-France cooperation therefore aligns not only with national interests but with the broader interests of the international community.
Meanwhile, the multilateral system is under acute strain. Climate finance remains insufficient. Food and energy security pressures are mounting. The Global South is demanding a stronger voice. Increasing geopolitical tensions have eroded the capacity of existing institutions to coordinate action. Here again, China and France have an opportunity – and arguably a responsibility – to lead. Whenever the two countries have worked in tandem, from climate negotiations to global development discussions, they have demonstrated that constructive engagement between major powers remains not only possible but productive.
Macron's visit comes at a time when Europe is reassessing its global posture and the world is searching for stability, even as the policies of U.S. President Donald Trump project inconsistency and unilateralism. In such a context, China and France can offer something rare: the ability to steer the global conversation away from confrontation and back toward cooperation. Their partnership, rooted in long-term vision rather than short-term tactical calculation, can help shape a more balanced and predictable international order.
The symbolism of this visit will echo far beyond Paris and Beijing. At a time when narratives of division dominate global headlines, both countries are choosing engagement. Their cooperation sends a clear message: Dialogue still works. Open trade still matters. When frictions arise, negotiation can yield a compromise. Mutual trust is not an obsolete ideal, and major powers can maintain their independence while building common ground.
If successful, this visit will show that China and France are capable of shaping – not merely responding to – the forces defining the 21st century. Their cooperation across traditional sectors, paired with new momentum in green technology, AI, and other strategic fields, could serve as a model for broader China-EU relations. And by reaffirming their commitment to multilateralism at a moment of profound global uncertainty, they can help restore confidence in diplomacy itself.
Macron's state visit to China is therefore far more than a bilateral engagement. It is an opportunity for two influential nations to chart a path toward openness, stability, and shared responsibility at a moment when the world urgently needs all three. The stakes are high, but so is the potential. Should Paris and Beijing seize this moment with clarity and ambition, their partnership could offer not only progress for both countries but a measure of hope for a world searching for direction.
David Gosset, a special commentator for CGTN, is the founder of the China-Europe-America Global Initiative and a specialist in global affairs and sinology.
