ReturnChina and Spain are ready to work together to further advance their comprehensive strategic partnership, Chinese Vice President Han Zheng and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said during a meeting in Madrid on Wednesday.
Han recalled Sanchez's latest visit to China in April, the third in three years, during which Sanchez had profound exchanges with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. The two sides agreed to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, maintain the free trade order, and safeguard international fairness and justice, underscoring the vital significance of China-Spain relations in promoting global stability and prosperity, Han added.
This year marks 20 years since the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Spain. Han said China is ready to take this opportunity to work with the Spanish side to implement the important consensus reached by their leaders, maintain high-level exchanges, continuously strengthen political mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, further enhance communication, collaboration and mutual support in multilateral mechanisms including the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, and promote greater development of the China-Spain comprehensive strategic partnership.
Against the backdrop of the current volatile international situation, China and Europe should enhance solidarity and cooperation, maintain multilateralism and free trade, Han said, adding that such efforts are not only beneficial to China and Europe, but also conducive to stabilizing the global economy.
Han expressed hope that Spain will play an active role in pushing forward the sound and steady development of China-Europe relations, taking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the European Union (EU) as an opportunity.
Sanchez said China's adherence and commitment to multilateralism are particularly valuable at a time when unilateralism and protectionism are harming all countries' interests. There is no winner in a tariff war, he said, adding that Spain and the EU, both opposed to unilateralism and supportive of free trade, are willing to work with China to maintain the international trade order and safeguard multilateralism.
The Spanish government adheres to the one-China policy and welcomes more Chinese businesses to invest in Spain, he added.
Sanchez also expressed the Spanish government's willingness to play an active role in boosting Europe-China relations.
