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Xi, Sanchez: Safeguard Multilateralism 04/14 06:23
BEIJING (AP) -- The leaders of China and Spain on Tuesday pledged to
strengthen their relations and work to safeguard multilateralism at a time when
the world is being impacted by various conflicts, including the recent war in
Iran, during a meeting in Beijing on Tuesday.
"We should strengthen communication, consolidate mutual trust, cooperate
closely, oppose the world's retrogression to the law of the jungle, and jointly
safeguard genuine multilateralism," said Chinese President Xi Jinping during a
reception for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Snchez at the Great Hall of the
People.
Snchez agreed and said both countries "can contribute to finding solutions
to the various trade tensions that exist, to the geopolitical difficulties and
complexities of today's world, to the wars, to the environmental and social
challenges that afflict the world."
Snchez is in China for his fourth trip in just over three years to the
world's second-largest economy.
Spain is looking to strengthen its political and commercial ties with
Beijing, and the visit comes as Snchez faces a strained relationship with the
U.S. over his opposition to the war in Iran.
Snchez sees China as key to end the war
Later, during a press conference, Snchez said that China was the only
global player he could see helping end wars in Iran and other places, such as
Ukraine.
"I find it very difficult to find other interlocutors, beyond China, who can
resolve this situation in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz," Pedro Snchez said,
urging the Asian giant to do more on the diplomatic front.
Snchez said that his country wants to avoid impunity for those who commit
crimes in places like Gaza, where he said a "genocide" has been committed.
"International law is being violated today, fundamentally by one country:
the government of Israel," he said. "There is also an absolutely illegal
response from the Iranian regime regarding a war that we have described from
the very beginning as a mistake and an illegality."
Snchez has been one of Europe's loudest critics of the U.S. and Israel's
military actions in the Middle East. His government recently declared its
airspace closed to U.S. planes being used in the Iran war, and says it is not
allowing the U.S. to use jointly operated military bases in southern Spain for
actions related to the Iran war.
Spain hopes for greater access for its products in China
One of the goals of Snchez's trip has been to find ways to reduce the trade
gap with China, and he said that after raising the issue in his meeting with
Xi, he sensed "understanding and a willingness to work to achieve that balance."
He said that Spain will sign 19 agreements, 10 of them on the economic side,
including some to expand access for Spanish agrifood products in China and
boost exports.
"The current trade imbalance between Europe and China, and between Spain and
China, is excessive, and we must do everything possible to correct it," he said.
The prime minister added that China must see Spain and Europe as a place to
invest.
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