Xi Jinping Holds Virtual Summit with French and German Leaders

Xi Jinping Holds Virtual Summit with French and German Leaders

On July 5， 2021， President Xi Jinping held a virtual summit with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Xi pointed out that China and Europe have engaged in cooperation based on the principles of mutual respect and seeking common ground while shelving differences.

Xi noted that the two sides should expand mutually beneficial cooperation for win-win results. China is willing to convene the 23rd China-EU leadersmeeting with the European side at an early date， conduct high-level dialogues in strategic， economic， trade， cultural， digital， and climate sectors， and advance mutual recognition and protection of products listed in the China-EU agreement on geographical indicators to deliver more tangible benefits to the people.

Xi indicated that China is ready to work with Europe to ensure positive outcomes at the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity （COP15）， and the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Macron said that France is committed to promoting cooperation with China in a practical manner， supports the conclusion of the EU-China invest- ment agreement and the strengthening of cultural exchanges， and welcomes Chinese companies to invest in France.

Noting the importance of the EU-China relationship， Merkel said that the two sides share consensus on many issues and can cooperate in many areas， and that both sides should respect each other and reduce differences through enhanced dialogue.

Li Keqiang Attends Virtual Dialogue with U.K. Business Leaders

On July 6， 2021， Premier Li Keqiang held a virtual dialogue with U.K. business leaders in Beijing， focusing on topics pertaining to China-U.K. relations and cooperation， the COVID-19 pandemic， climate change， the business environment， cooperation on trade in services， and people-to-people exchanges. Leaders and executives of more than 30 multinational companies and renowned institutions and the 48 Group Club attended the dialogue.

Li Keqiang stressed that China attaches great importance to responding to climate change. He hopes that the two sides will further step up cooperation on clean energy and other related sectors， and expand cooperation on green technology on the basis of intellectual property protection to jointly respond to climate change.

Li Keqiang noted that in the process of fostering a new development paradigm， China will continue to devote effort to creating a market-oriented and law-based international business environment， treating all types of market players equally， including foreign companies， and welcoming more foreign capital into China.

The British participants said that the British business community greatly values the Chinese market and is full of confidence in Chinas development. There is huge room for win-win cooperation between the two countries in finance， services， agriculture， healthcare， education， manufacturing， and infrastructure.

The dialogue， with the theme of “Enhancing Mutual Trust， Expanding Cooperation， and Seeking Common Development，” was co-hosted by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the China-Britain Business Council （CBBC）.

Wang Yi Attends Meeting of SCO Council of Foreign Ministers

On July 14， 2021， State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization（SCO） Council of Foreign Ministers held in Dushanbe， capital of Tajikistan.

Wang Yi said that over the past 20 years， the SCO has established the norms governing state-to-state relations of “friendship for generations and peace forever，” and created a new model of cooperation featuring solidarity， coordination， inclusiveness， and mutual learning among countries with different social systems and development paths. He emphasized， “We need to uphold the Shanghai Spirit， promote the healthy and steady development of the SCO， and make new contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.”

Wang Yi put forward a five-point proposal to the SCO members： to pursue solidarity and coordination， and further cement the political foundation for cooperation； to share responsibility for security and ensure long-lasting peace and order in the region； to cooperate in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and safeguarding peoples well-being； to open up more and become increasingly interconnected with the rest of the world so as to steadily boost economic recovery； to follow the trends of the times and build a community with a shared future.

Foreign ministers of other countries spoke highly of the remarkable achievements that the SCO has made. They indicated their support for the advocacy to continually uphold the Shanghai Spirit， further deepen cooperation in fields across the board， and play a bigger role in safeguarding world peace and development.