His guest Chinese the president Xi Jinping Spanish Prime Minister in Beijing Pedro Sanchez he wants to show that his country has strengthened its international influence, months before Madrid becomes its president. EUROPEAN UNION..

Sanchez will be in China tomorrow Thursday and the day after Friday, where he will hold talks with Xi after attending the Bao Forum for Asia (BFA) on Hainan Island.

This will be the second visit of the leader of an EU country. in China after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the country in November, while French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are expected in early April.

Sanchez: China’s voice must be heard

Beijing’s invitation, 50 years after China and Spain established diplomatic relations, demonstrates Spain’s “international recognition at such a challenging geopolitical moment,” Sanchez said last Thursday while attending an EU summit. in Brussels.

His talks with the Chinese president will mostly focus on the war in Ukraine. Beijing is trying to mediate in resolving the crisis and has submitted a 12-point document with proposals in this direction.

China’s “voice” “must be heard if we are to end this war,” Sanchez said on Friday.

Although Spain is far from Ukraine, it has hosted more than 165,000 Ukrainian refugees, making it the fourth largest EU country after Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic, according to Eurostat.

Moreover, from July 1, Madrid takes over the EU presidency in turn, and this issue will also be discussed between the two leaders.

“China wants concrete things from the EU. and wants to reach out to Pedro Sanchez for this reason,” said José Torreplaca of the European Council on Foreign Relations.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}