BEIJING, May 6. /TASS/. China hopes to develop a strategic partnership with the European Union, Chinese President Xi Jinping said during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Paris.

"China has always viewed relations with the European Union from a strategic and long-term point of view," China’s Central Television quoted him as saying. "We hope that relations between China and France, as well as between China and the European Union, will <…> develop."

According to the Chinese president, China and the European Union, "as two major forces in the world, must stick to partnership, continue dialogue and cooperation and expand strategic communication."

In today’s turbulent times, China and the European Union should seek a strategic consensus and strategic cooperation, Xi said as he called for efforts to promote sustainable and stable relations in order to make a contribution to peace and development in the global arena.

Xi is on a visit to France from May 5 through 7. His visit coincides with the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He previously visited the country in 2014 and 2019.

Upon his arrival in Paris, the Xinhua news agency released an article from Xi where he expressed the hope for closer cooperation between the two countries in various spheres and called for measures to build up mutual trust. Apart from that, France’s Le Figaro newspaper published Xi’s column on international matters. Thus, he pledged that China, jointly with France and the entire world community, will make efforts to find ways of settling the Ukrainian crisis. He also stressed the need for establishing an independent Palestinian state to put an end to the Middle East conflict.