China reaches out as Hollande wins

President congratulates new French leader on historic election victory

China congratulated the newly elected French president on Monday and said that it was willing to work with Francois Hollande amid concerns his victory could derail plans to cut the deficit and reduce cooperation.

Hollande, 57, defeated Nicolas Sarkozy by 51.8 percent to 48.2 percent on Sunday, becoming the country's first Socialist to win the presidency in more than two decades. Sarkozy was the first incumbent since 1981 not to win re-election.

President Hu Jintao sent a message of congratulations to Hollande saying that China is ready to work with France, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said on Monday.

Maintaining momentum in relations serves not only the fundamental interests of the two countries but also of the world, Hong told a daily news conference.

Hollande would like to visit China in the fall, Hollande's spokesman Bruno Le Roux said earlier.

Jean-Marc Ayrault, French parliamentary leader and possible prime ministerial candidate, expressed the importance of trust.

"We want a relationship with China based on trust," Ayrault told China Daily. "China (is a) great power, not just in economic terms but a world power. We respect China. We have to have discussions between France and China.

"Sincerely, I believe that Francois Hollande will be more than happy to visit China," Ayrault added.

Analysts said that Hollande's victory may introduce some uncertainties to relations, but the new president is likely to adopt a pragmatic approach.

During the campaign, Hollande opposed China's aid to France and criticized the exchange rate. He also proposed that the European Union increased tax on imports from China. Hollande said that he didn't oppose Chinese products but only hoped for, what he described, as a trade balance with China.

When candidates, either in the US or Europe, have not formulated a concise plan to address domestic problems, China is often a scapegoat, said Zhang Haibing, a European studies expert with the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies.

Increasing trade protectionism targeting China will not solve the EU crisis, Zhang said, stressing that Europe has to first of all improve economic competitiveness. "No matter Hollande's personal opinion toward China, cooperation with China is inevitable for France and for Europe," she added.

Relations between France and China will not change overnight and Hollande is well aware of China's importance on the world stage and of the role it can play in helping the French economy, said David Cordonnier, a policy adviser and president of the Jeunes Socialistes de la Belgique in Belgium.

Tian Ling, a member of the French National Council for Diversity, agreed that Hollande will seek to foster smooth trade and investment relations with China.

"He is unlikely to clash with China on ideological issues but rather he will be pragmatic as he is a smart politician. However, it will take time for Hollande and his team to get to know more about China and Chinese policymakers, so there is still a question mark around his policies," Tian said.

Hollande did not fully elaborate his policies during the campaign, Zhang Jinling, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said.

Former Chinese ambassador to France Cai Fangbo told Chinese media that the partnership between the two countries would continue moving forward, but the Taiwan and Tibet questions remained red lines for China.

Sarkozy was the first French president since Valery Giscard d'Estaing in 1981 not to be re-elected and the 11th eurozone leader to be ousted from office since the beginning of the sovereign debt crisis.

US President Barack Obama on Sunday congratulated Hollande.

European leaders also scrambled to congratulate Hollande. German Chancellor Angela Merkel extended an invitation to him in a phone call on Sunday night to visit Berlin.

Contact the writers at zhaoshengnan@chinadaily.com.cn, lixiang@chinadaily.com.cn and fujing@chinadaily.com.cn

AFP and Tan Xuan in Brussels contributed to this story.