A China-Europe freight train carrying medical supplies bound for Madrid of Spain departs from the city of Yiwu, East China's Zhejiang province, on June 5, 2020. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

President Xi Jinping has underlined the importance of adhering to the general direction of relations between China and the European Union from a strategic perspective and appropriately managing their differences, as opportunities as well as challenges are envisaged for their ties in the future.

Xi told Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez during a phone conversation on May 26 that he hoped the Spanish government would continue to play its constructive role in promoting the steady and lasting development of China-EU relations.

Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, huge potential has been revealed from pragmatic cooperation between China and the EU, Xi said, noting that the basic idea of China-EU ties that feature cooperation based on win-win results should be maintained.

China stands ready to expand two-way trade exchanges with Spain, promote cooperative projects in areas such as port logistics and smart cities, strengthen third-party market cooperation in Latin America and Africa, and deepen bilateral people-to-people exchanges, he said.

Xi also stressed strengthening political party exchanges and the sharing of governance experience between the two countries, which would further improve global governance.

Sanchez said that it is more necessary than ever for all countries to unite and cooperate and safeguard multilateralism in the face of severe challenges brought by the pandemic.

Spain welcomes investment from Chinese companies and will continue to play a positive role in pushing forward the development of the EU-China strategic partnership, Sanchez said.

At a special videoconference on May 25 night with the Munich Security Conference forum, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the suspended China-EU investment agreement is of great mutual benefit and “is not a gift given by one side to the other”.

The European Parliament adopted a resolution on May 20 freezing ratification of the landmark China-EU investment agreement after Beijing sanctioned some European politicians for attacking China on topics such as Xinjiang.

As some Europeans start to define China as a “rival”, Wang warns that stoking China-EU political confrontation and economic decoupling “will not last long”.

Wang said China-EU cooperation is an “irresistible trend”.

He noted that some European individuals “arbitrarily link issues of different natures to one another” and politicize economic and trade issues, which is “unacceptable” and “will lead nowhere”.

Former German foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel told the forum that the West needs to understand the realities of working with Beijing. “Without considering China’s contribution, one can no longer discuss global issues in the 21st century,” CGTN quoted Gabriel as saying.

Also on May 26, Xi had a phone conversation with Milo Djukanovic, the president of Montenegro, saying that China will work with the country to implement the consensus and outcome of a summit held via video link in February between China and Central and Eastern European Countries.

As this year was designated as the China-CEEC Year of Green Development and Environmental Protection, China supports Montenegro playing a positive role in leading this mechanism, he said.

Xi said that, faced with changes unseen in a century and the pandemic, China is willing to work with Montenegro to consolidate political mutual trust, deepen pragmatic cooperation in all areas including infrastructure, and promote the continuous development of bilateral ties, benefiting the people of both countries.

Djukanovic said that the joint building of the Belt and Road Initiative and the CEEC-China cooperation mechanism have brought important opportunities and tangible benefits to countries in the region including Montenegro.

His country will continue to actively participate in and firmly promote the in-depth development of CEEC-China cooperation and steadfastly uphold multilateralism, he said.

In a phone call on May 26 with Nepalese President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Xi said that China will continue to provide as much support as possible for Nepal’s fight against the pandemic as the South Asian region faces a devastating second wave of COVID-19.

On May 25, Nepal reported 8,387 new cases of coronavirus infection and 169 deaths across the country.

Xi said that the Chinese central government, local authorities and nongovernmental organizations have quickly acted and provided medical supplies, equipment and vaccines that are urgently needed by Nepal and shared prevention and treatment experience with the country.

Bhandari hailed the great achievements that China has made in economic and social development under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, especially in poverty eradication and space exploration.

Contact the writers at mojingxi@chinadaily.com.cn