Chinese President Xi Jinping met with King Felipe VI of Spain in Beijing, marking the first state visit by a Spanish monarch to China in 18 years. The leaders discussed expanding mutual investment and cooperation, amid ongoing trade tensions between China and the European Union (EU).
President Xi expressed China's willingness to import more high-quality Spanish products and explore cooperation in emerging fields such as new energy, digital economy, and artificial intelligence. He also emphasized the importance of complementing each other's strengths to jointly develop markets in third countries like Latin America.
This visit comes as Spain seeks to strengthen economic ties with China following the EU's imposition of tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. In response, China had imposed anti-dumping duties on EU pork, affecting Spain significantly. However, recent improvements in diplomatic relations have led to increased Spanish pork exports to China.
King Felipe VI reiterated Spain's commitment to the 'One China' policy and highlighted the mutual benefits of Chinese investments in Spain's economy and green transition. He expressed Spain's desire to seize opportunities from China's '15th Five-Year Plan' to enhance cooperation in economic trade, industry, science, and technology.
The two countries signed cooperation documents in various fields, including economic trade, science and technology, and education. This move is seen as part of Spain's strategy to lead EU engagement with China and expand its diplomatic presence in the Asia-Pacific region.
King Felipe VI's visit is seen as a strategic effort by Spain to address its trade deficit with China and foster substantive economic cooperation, amidst the broader context of EU-China trade dynamics.
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