French connection to more fruitful engagement

Unlike what its name suggests, the 24th China-France Strategic Dialogue, which just concluded in Beijing, was not about "deliverables" alone but rather about the orientation of bilateral ties. As a significant follow-up to the 12th European Union-China High-level Strategic Dialogue last month, the China-France engagement testifies to a shared interest in sustaining the mutually beneficial aspects of bilateral ties.

The dialogue, featuring Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the French president's diplomatic counselor, Emmanuel Bonne, was reportedly "friendly and in-depth", and the consensuses were broad and upbeat.

The verbal consensuses they reached are of great importance to both sides in these times of transformative changes. This dialogue and the earlier China-EU dialogue have injected new energy into China-France and China-EU cooperation while providing the anchor for the important relationships to weather the political turbulence sweeping across the world. Amid the strong headwinds of a divided world, a persistent China-France and China-EU bond would be critical to promoting world peace and stability.