Joint statement of People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the French Republic (full text)
Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, April 7th
Joint statement of People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the French Republic
At the invitation of President People’s Republic of China (PRC), President Emmanuel Macron of the French Republic paid a state visit to People’s Republic of China (PRC) from April 5 to 7, 2023. On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the two heads of state reviewed the solid foundation of Sino-French relations and the friendship between the two peoples, exchanged in-depth views on bilateral relations, China-EU relations and major international and regional issues, and decided to open up new prospects for Sino-French cooperation and seek new momentum for China-EU relations on the basis of the joint statements of January 9, 2018, March 25, 2019 and November 6, 2019.
First, strengthen political dialogue and promote political mutual trust
1. China and France will continue the annual meeting mechanism between the two heads of state.
2. China and France emphasized the importance of high-level exchanges and strategic dialogue, high-level economic and financial dialogue and high-level people-to-people exchange mechanism for developing bilateral cooperation, and agreed to hold a new meeting of the three mechanisms during the year.
3. China and France reaffirm their willingness to promote the continuous development of a close and lasting comprehensive strategic partnership between China and France on the basis of mutual respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and major interests.
4. China and France agreed to deepen the exchange of strategic issues, especially the dialogue between the southern theater of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and the French army in the Pacific Ocean, and strengthen mutual understanding on international and regional security issues.
5. On the 20th anniversary of the establishment of comprehensive strategic partnership between China and the EU, China reiterated its commitment to developing China-EU relations, encouraging high-level exchanges, promoting consensus on strategic issues, increasing personnel exchanges, coping with global challenges together, and actively promoting economic cooperation in a balanced way. As a member of the European Union, France agrees with the above direction and will make contributions to it.
6. France reaffirms its adherence to the one-China policy.
Second, jointly promote world security and stability
7. As permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, China and France are committed to seeking constructive solutions based on international law for the challenges and threats to international security and stability. They believe that differences and disputes between countries should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and consultation, and seek to strengthen the multilateral international system with the United Nations at the core in a multipolar world.
8. China and France reaffirmed their support for the Joint Statement on Preventing Nuclear War and Avoiding an Arms Race issued by the leaders of China, France, Russia, Britain and the United States (P5) on January 3, 2022. As emphasized in the statement, "a nuclear war cannot be won or won." The two countries called for not taking any action that might aggravate the risk of tension.
9. The two countries are willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation, jointly safeguard the authority and effectiveness of the arms control and non-proliferation system and advance the international arms control process. China and France reaffirmed their commitment to promoting the three pillars of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, namely, nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and peaceful use of nuclear energy, and constantly strengthening the universality, authority and effectiveness of the Treaty.
10. Both sides support all efforts to restore peace in Ukraine on the basis of international law and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
11. The two sides oppose armed attacks against nuclear power plants and other peaceful nuclear facilities, and support the constructive role played by the International Atomic Energy Agency in promoting the safety and security of peaceful nuclear facilities, including the efforts made to ensure the safety and security of the Zaporoze nuclear power plant.
12. The two countries stressed the importance that the parties to the conflict should strictly abide by international humanitarian law. In particular, the two countries called for protecting women and children affected by conflicts in accordance with international commitments, increasing humanitarian assistance to conflict areas and providing safe, rapid and barrier-free access to humanitarian assistance.
13. The two sides will continue to maintain communication under the Sino-French strategic dialogue mechanism.
14. The Comprehensive Agreement on the Iranian Nuclear Issue (JCPOA) reached in 2015 is an important achievement of multilateral diplomacy. The two countries reaffirmed their commitment to promoting a political and diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue, reaffirming their commitment to maintaining the authority and effectiveness of the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and Security Council resolutions, and reaffirming their support for the International Atomic Energy Agency under this framework.
15. China and France will continue to maintain close communication on the Korean Peninsula issue.
16. China and France agreed to continue exchanges through the Sino-French dialogue mechanism on cyber affairs.
Third, promote economic exchanges
17. China and France are committed to providing fair and non-discriminatory competition conditions for enterprises, especially in the fields of cosmetics, agriculture and agro-food products, air traffic management, finance (banking, insurance, asset managers), health (medical materials, vaccines), energy, investment and sustainable development. To this end, the two countries are committed to providing a good environment for enterprise cooperation, improving the market access of enterprises of the two countries in each other’s countries, improving the business environment, and ensuring respect for the intellectual property rights of all enterprises of the two countries. In the field of digital economy, including 5G, China promised to continue to handle the licensing applications of French enterprises in a fair and non-discriminatory manner on the basis of the laws and regulations of the two countries, including national security.
18. China and France are willing to continue to strengthen pragmatic cooperation in various fields of service industry, support institutions and enterprises of the two countries to carry out economic and trade exchanges on the basis of mutual benefit, and promote the development of service trade. France is willing to be invited as the guest of honor in China International Fair for Trade in Services in 2024.
19. China and France hope to strengthen the partnership in the fields of agriculture, agri-food, veterinary medicine and plant quarantine, and are pleased to see that the market access of pork products has been guaranteed, the market has been opened to Actinidia arguta and feed dairy products, and 15 pork export institutions have been approved to register in China. The competent authorities of the two countries will respond as soon as possible to the future registration requests of agricultural and agro-food products, especially meat and aquatic products export enterprises and the application for infant milk formula registration that meet the requirements of the laws and regulations on food hygiene and safety of both sides, as well as the market opening requests put forward by their respective departments. The two sides will continue to exchange and cooperate in beef cattle, wine industry and geographical indications, especially the registration of geographical indications of Burgundy wine. France supports China’s application to join the international grape and wine organization as soon as possible, and supports China to hold the international grape and wine industry conference.
20. China and France welcome the conclusion of the "Bulk Purchase Agreement" for Chinese airlines to purchase 160 Airbus aircraft. Depending on the recovery and development of China’s air transport market and fleet, the two countries will study the freight and long-distance transport needs of Chinese airlines in due course. The two sides welcome the enhanced cooperation between CAAC and EU Aviation Safety Administration, and will speed up the airworthiness certification process on the basis of internationally recognized safety standards, especially for Y12F, H175, Dassault 8X and other projects. The two sides welcomed the agreement reached by enterprises of the two countries on sustainable aviation fuel. The two sides continued to carry out industrial cooperation, especially the Airbus Tianjin new assembly line project.
21. China and France support the airlines of the two countries to restore air connectivity to the pre-epidemic level as soon as possible with the aim of resuming the implementation of the Air Traffic Agreement between the Government of People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Government of the French Republic signed on June 1, 1966 and related air rights arrangements in a coordinated manner by the civil aviation departments of the two countries. Airlines of the two countries should enjoy fair and equal opportunities when operating flights between China and France. The two countries support deepening personnel and economic exchanges, including providing visa facilities for private sector personnel and business people of the two countries.
22. The two sides are satisfied with the cooperation between the space agencies of the two countries on the joint research of Chang ‘e-6 and extraterrestrial samples.
23. In order to realize the common aspiration of low-carbon transformation of energy system, China and France have carried out practical cooperation in civil nuclear energy under the framework of intergovernmental cooperation agreement on peaceful use of nuclear energy. The two countries are committed to continuing to promote cooperation on frontier topics in the field of nuclear energy research and development on the basis of the agreement between China’s National Atomic Energy Agency and the French Atomic Energy and Alternative Energy Commission. The two countries support enterprises of both sides to study the possibility of strengthening industrial and technical cooperation on nuclear waste reprocessing and other issues.
24. China and France welcomed the results of the intergovernmental agreement on third-party market cooperation in 2015. Both parties are committed to the follow-up and implementation of the identified third-party market cooperation projects. The two governments encourage enterprises, financial institutions and other entities to explore new major economic cooperation projects in third-party markets on the basis of applicable international high standards.
Fourth, restart humanities exchanges
25. In order to promote the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions around the world, China and France support deepening cooperation in the creation and utilization of cultural works and will actively promote the resumption of exchanges and cooperation in the fields of culture and tourism. China and France welcome the statement of intent on cultural cooperation reached by the cultural authorities of the two countries.
26. The two sides will jointly hold the Sino-French Year of Cultural Tourism in 2024, and support the Palace Museum and Versailles, Shanghai West Coast Art Museum and Pompidou Art Center to jointly organize high-level activities in the two countries. The two sides promised to provide customs, logistics and other facilitation measures for roving exhibitions on the premise of abiding by their respective laws, and will strive to ensure the integrity and smooth return of cultural items in the supported exhibitions.
27. The two sides reiterated their willingness to strengthen cooperation in the fields of culture and creative industries, especially literature, movies, TV documentaries, publishing (including games), music, architecture and digitalization, through joint production, copyright cooperation, competitions and artist exchanges, so as to enhance the communication potential for the widest audience.
28. China and France are committed to strengthening bilateral cooperation in the field of cultural heritage protection, restoration and development. The two countries welcome the conclusion of a road map for cultural heritage cooperation on the participation of China experts and French teams in the site restoration of Notre Dame, the research cooperation on the conservation and restoration of terracotta warriors and horses, the cooperation project between Gongbo Hall and Maoling, and the promotion of friendly relations between the two countries’ world heritage sites. The two sides will continue to work together to prevent and crack down on theft, illegal excavation and illegal entry and exit of cultural property. The two countries reiterated their full support for the foundation of the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas to protect cultural heritage in conflict areas.
29. China and France reiterate their emphasis on language teaching cooperation and promote friendship and mutual understanding. The two countries will work to extend the validity of the Agreement on Language Cooperation signed by the two governments in June 2015, encourage Chinese and French teaching in both schools, increase bilingual courses, and strengthen the exchange and training of language teachers.
30. China and France reiterate the importance they attach to strengthening cooperation in higher education and vocational education, and will encourage Chinese and French institutions of higher learning to develop partnerships, such as jointly establishing cooperative educational institutions, jointly promoting the mutual resumption of exchanges between foreign students and teachers, and facilitating inter-school exchanges. To this end, the two sides have formulated convenient procedures for the above-mentioned personnel to apply for visas. The two sides will hold a new meeting of the China-France Mixed Commission on Education as soon as possible.
The two heads of state agreed to convene a new meeting of the Sino-French Joint Commission on Scientific and Technological Cooperation as soon as possible to determine the major direction of bilateral scientific cooperation and the "Sino-French Carbon Neutralization Center" for promoting carbon-neutral scientific and technological cooperation. China and France hope to promote the exchange of scientific researchers through the Sino-French scientific research partner exchange program (Hubert curien-Cai Yuanpei cooperation program). The two sides are willing to continue to implement the "Sino-French exchange program for outstanding young researchers", strengthen exchanges between young researchers of the two countries, promote cooperation in priority areas and carry out joint research activities.
32. With a view to the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games, the two heads of state hope that sports, especially the exchange of young athletes, the development of sports infrastructure and the sharing of experience in the sports industry will be an important part of bilateral relations.
V. jointly addressing global challenges
33. According to United Nations statistics, 323 million people will face food crisis in 2022. In this context, the two sides promised to maintain market stability, avoid unreasonable restrictions on the export of agricultural inputs and agricultural products, and start to smooth the international grain supply chain by facilitating the export of grain products and fertilizers. The two sides are committed to achieving the above goals through China’s international food security cooperation initiative and food and agricultural resilience action.
34. Both China and France believe that enhancing support for African partners and other countries most affected by the food crisis is very important for building a resilient and sustainable food system. To this end, the two sides are willing to promote international cooperation in saving grain and promoting localized grain production. According to this goal, the two sides jointly support the FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the World Food Program and other relevant organizations dealing with food security issues, as well as financial institutions and bilateral and multilateral funders.
35. China and France emphasize their support for the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization as the core and rules as the basis, and are committed to creating a free, open, transparent, inclusive and non-discriminatory trade and investment environment, supporting the necessary reform of the World Trade Organization and supporting the 13th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization to achieve positive results.
36. China and France are willing to cooperate to solve the financing difficulties of developing economies and emerging market economies, encourage them to accelerate energy and climate transformation and support their sustainable development. China will attend the Global Financing Compact Summit on Climate Change in Paris in June 2023. The French side will attend the third "Belt and Road" international cooperation summit forum.
37. The two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation under the framework of the G-20, promote the role of the G-20 as the main forum for international economic cooperation, and promote the reform of the international monetary and financial system in accordance with the commitments made by the leaders of the Bali Summit.
38. Against the background of the vulnerability of developing countries, China and France support the implementation of the Common Framework for Follow-up Debt Handling of the Debt Relief Initiative. The Common Framework was adopted by the G20 and the Paris Club in November 2020, with the participation of China and France. The two sides reiterated that all parties should implement the Common Framework in a predictable, timely, orderly and coordinated manner, and support the debt agenda adopted by the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting in February 2023.
39. The two sides appreciated that the Bali Summit of G20 welcomed countries to lend SDR voluntarily, and called on G20 member countries and willing countries to intensify their efforts. G20 member countries made efforts to increase their SDR transfer ratio to 30% in order to achieve the goal of $100 billion adopted by G20 Rome Summit as soon as possible.
40. Climate, biodiversity and land degradation prevention are common priorities of China and France. The two countries pledged to uphold the Beijing Initiative put forward in November 2019 and continue to maintain high-level ambitions within the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (hereinafter referred to as the Kunming-Montreal Framework). The two sides welcomed the adoption of the "Kunming-Montreal Framework" at the second phase of the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15). China will continue to hold the presidency of COP15 in the next two years and is willing to work with France to actively promote the complete and effective implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Framework. The two countries welcome the positive contribution of the Kunming Biodiversity Fund and the arrangement to be established under the Global Environment Facility to biodiversity financing. The two countries welcomed the work introduced at the "One Forest" Summit in Libreville.
41. China and France promised to report the revised national strategy and action plan according to the "Kunming-Montreal Framework" before COP16. China will actively study the possibility of joining the "high-ambition alliance between nature and mankind". The two countries have contributed to the goal of reducing subsidies that are harmful to biodiversity by 500 billion US dollars each year.
42. China and France reaffirmed their carbon/climate neutrality commitments. France promises to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. China promises that carbon dioxide emissions will peak by 2030 and strive to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. The two countries will adopt policies and measures to implement the national independent contribution targets set according to the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
43. The two sides highly appreciated the achievements of the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), and promised to maintain close communication and coordination on the road to preparing for the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), so as to promote the success of the first global inventory of the Paris Agreement and make positive progress on issues such as mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage and means of implementation.
44. China and France support the promotion and development of financing conducive to ecological transformation, and encourage their respective financial departments (including banks, insurance institutions, asset managers and owners) to coordinate their business and achieve the goals of mitigating and adapting to climate change, protecting biodiversity, developing circular economy, controlling and reducing pollution or developing blue finance. The two countries also encourage development institutions, development banks, central banks, regulators and financial authorities to carry out exchanges and share experiences in the field of green and sustainable finance, and promote the formulation and improvement of standards in non-financial information standardization. The two countries pledged to support the development of sustainable capital markets.
Recognizing that the construction industry accounts for an important proportion of greenhouse gas emissions in both countries, China and France are actively studying and joining the "Building Breakthrough" initiative. The two countries strengthen cooperation, promote energy conservation and carbon reduction in buildings, and promote the sustainable development of cities.
46. China and France are committed to marine protection. The two countries are pleased to see that the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) has reached an agreement on the text on the conservation and sustainable utilization of marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction, and will continue to strengthen communication and coordination on the follow-up work. The two heads of state reiterated that the two sides will promote the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources in accordance with the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and continue to discuss the establishment of marine protected areas in Antarctica. China and France are committed to the "United Nations Decade of Marine Science for Sustainable Development", and established national committees in 2022 and 2021 respectively to highlight the importance of knowledge in better protecting the oceans. The two sides acknowledged the importance of combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
47. China and France are committed to promoting the success of the 2025 United Nations Ocean Congress, co-hosted by France and Costa Rica. China will study the road map proposed by France to link China as the president of the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) with France as the president of the 3rd UN Ocean Congress to be held in Nice in 2025.
48. China and France are opposed to plastic pollution (including microplastics pollution). The two countries support and participate in the work of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee authorized by resolution 5/14 of the resumed fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2), and are committed to adopting a legally binding international instrument.
49. China and France are committed to the protection and sustainable management of forest ecosystems, support scientific research on more sustainable value chains, and combat illegal deforestation and related trade. The two countries are willing to promote cooperation in the fields of nature protection and grassland protection, restoration and sustainable utilization. Under this framework, the two countries are pleased to see the active cooperation between the National Forestry and Grassland Bureau of China and the French Biodiversity Agency.
50. China and France will work together to promote a more just energy transformation in developing countries through just energy transformation partnerships and other tools.
51. China and France emphasize the importance of promoting and protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms for the development of all countries in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.