More China-EU exchanges urged to strengthen ties

China's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday called on the European Union to meet with China halfway, and said Beijing welcomes members of the European Parliament to visit China more often.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun made the remarks when asked about US and European media reports on Beijing's potential plan to lift sanctions imposed in 2021 against five EU lawmakers for their comments attacking China's human rights record.

"China-EU legislative body exchanges are an important part of China-EU relations," Guo said at a regular news conference in Beijing.

"We hope the two sides will meet each other halfway, strengthen their exchanges, and welcome members of the European Parliament to visit China more often and see for themselves," he added.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the EU.

Guo said that currently "China-EU relations are showing a benign, improving momentum".

"The two sides are facing important opportunities for the development of bilateral relations," he said.

He noted that China-EU economic and trade cooperation enjoys complementary advantages and mutual benefits.

"As the world's major economies, China and the EU will inject valuable stability and certainty into the world economy and global trade by jointly safeguarding the multilateral trade system and promoting trade liberalization and facilitation under the current situation," he said.

Wang Lingjun, vice-minister of the General Administration of Customs, told reporters at another news conference last month that China and the EU are each other's most important trade partners.

In the first quarter of this year, China's imports and exports to the EU totaled 1.3 trillion yuan ($179 billion), up 1.4 percent year-on-year, Wang said.

Cai Run, head of the Chinese Mission to the EU, told a friendship event on Monday that China-EU relations have weathered changes in the international arena over the past 50 years and have continued to move forward.

The two sides "have achieved mutual success and have illuminated the world", he said.