China, EU should conduct more institutional dialogues to promote bilateral ties: Chinese FM

BEIJING -- China and the European Union (EU) should conduct more institutional dialogues to inject new and strong impetus into the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Sunday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks during a phone conversation with High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.

For his part, Borrell expressed his deep condolences for the recent torrential rains and floods in China, and emphasized that the EU is firmly committed to developing good relations with China.

The EU's Global Gateway strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative are no rivalries but complementary to each other, as both are aimed at promoting global development, he added.

Borrell stressed that he looks forward to visiting China as soon as possible and launching a strategic dialogue with the Chinese side to jointly prepare for this year's EU-China leaders' meeting and to promote the further development of EU-China relations.

Wang said that at present, China-EU high-level exchanges have maintained a good momentum, and both sides believe that partnership is the most important feature of China-EU relations.

China has always taken a positive attitude in promoting China-EU relations, he noted, adding China attaches great importance to the China-EU leaders' meeting scheduled for this year and expects it to play a strategic leading role in China-EU relations and bilateral cooperation.

China and the EU should conduct more institutional dialogues, so as to make up for the missing exchanges between China and the EU in the three years of the COVID-19 pandemic, and inject new and strong impetus into the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership, Wang said.

He also noted that China welcomes Borrell to lead a delegation to visit China this fall and hold a strategic dialogue to make political preparations for the China-EU leaders' meeting through extensive and in-depth exchanges.

The two sides also exchanged views on Ukraine, Niger and other international and regional issues of common concern.