“May 5 In the afternoon local time, President Xi Jinping arrived in Paris by plane to begin a state visit to France,” state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Landing in France, Xi Jinping begins his first trip to Europe since 2019, during which he will also visit Serbia and Hungary.
In an opinion piece published as he began a state visit to France on Sunday, the Chinese leader said he wanted to work with the international community to find ways to resolve the conflict sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We hope that peace and stability will soon return to Europe, and we intend to work with France and the entire international community to find good ways to resolve this crisis,” he wrote in Le Figaro daily, stressing that China is not a party to the conflict.
As previously announced, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is going to receive the Chinese leader in Paris on Sunday afternoon.
Xi Jinping’s talks with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are scheduled for Monday. After visiting France, the guest will continue to Serbia and Hungary in the coming days.
According to the Elysée Palace, the meetings in Paris will discuss the war in Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East, economic cooperation and climate protection. E. Macron previously said that it is necessary to do everything to include China in the solution of major global issues. Europeans hope that Beijing will support the stability of the international order.
Serbia has close relations with China and is a member of China’s New Silk Road investment and infrastructure initiative. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic went to Beijing last October. His country since 2014 is negotiating EU membership. But the talks are slow.
The Hungarian government led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is also seen as friendly to China. Hungary is also one of the few EU countries that have joined the “New Silk Road” initiative.
