French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said Friday at the end of a brief visit to Beijing that she was counting on the “vigilance” of Chinese authorities to avoid any support for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine.
The minister traveled to the Chinese capital for a day and sought to revive cultural and human exchanges between France and China that had been put on hold during the pandemic.
While his visit was an opportunity to announce new measures on visas and agreements in the areas of culture, research and health, it also offered an opportunity to discuss current conflicts in which France hopes China will play a larger role.
“We would of course like to have an intensive dialogue with China on global issues, but also on major crises,” including “the ongoing Russian war of aggression in Ukraine,” said Ms. Colonna during a joint press conference with China counterpart Wang Yi.
“We count on the vigilance of the Chinese authorities so that no structure in China, especially private ones, contributes directly or indirectly to Russia’s illegal war effort,” she said.
In this conflict, “cooperation with China is essential to promote a just and lasting peace,” she argued.
“China maintains normal and friendly relations with Russia” as well as other countries, Wang Yi stressed.
China “always takes an objective and impartial position” in international affairs and intends to “continue” to play a “constructive role,” he assured.
At a dinner after that press conference, Catherine Colonna and Wang Yi spoke about international crises, particularly the Middle East, the Russia-Ukraine war, North Korea and even Iran, a French diplomatic source told AFP.
– “Responsibilities” –
Regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict, marked by the start of a ceasefire on Friday and the expected release of 50 hostages by the Islamist movement, the minister called for “cooperation to curb terrorism.”
“For us, all hostages must be released. All of them, not just 50,” the minister said earlier at a briefing with French journalists, including AFP.
Catherine Colonna was received on Friday morning by Prime Minister Li Qiang under the chandeliers of the People’s Palace in the heart of Beijing and reminded her interlocutor that China and France are “permanent members of the Security Council” and as such have “global responsibilities”.
Catherine Colonna co-chaired the “High-Level Franco-Chinese Dialogue on Human Exchanges” at Peking University on Friday afternoon with her counterpart Wang Yi.
Paused during the pandemic, this dialogue, which began in 2014, focuses on academic, scientific, cultural and sporting exchanges, issues related to tourism and even gender equality issues.
– Visa exemption –
On the occasion of the ministerial visit, Beijing announced that from December 1st French people would be able to enter China without a visa for stays of a maximum of 15 days.
This agreement is valid until November 30, 2024 and also applies to nationals of five other countries (Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Malaysia).
The two ministers also launched the Franco-Chinese Center for Carbon Neutrality, which aims to facilitate scientific and technological cooperation between the two countries and finance joint research programs.
“One week before COP28, there could be no better way to reaffirm our two countries’ climate ambitions,” emphasized Ms. Colonna.
Other agreements reached include the extension of the partnership between the Center Pompidou and the West Bund Museum in Shanghai by five years. It essentially consists of loaning works and organizing exhibitions from the Paris Museum’s collections.
The two countries also signed an educational cooperation agreement aimed specifically at strengthening French teaching in China.
Since the recognition of the People’s Republic of China by France under General de Gaulle in 1964, Beijing has viewed Paris as an interlocutor with a more independent approach to the United States than other Western countries.
published November 24 at 2:39 p.m., AFP
share