Eduardo González
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will undertake an Asian tour of Vietnam and China next April to contribute to the rapprochement between the EU and “other powers and regional blocs” in the current “highly changing geopolitical context.”
The trip coincides with “the twentieth anniversary of the Strategic Partnership between China and Spain,” making it “a special year in bilateral relations,” the Prime Minister declared in Brussels during the press conference following the March European Council.
“Beyond this anniversary,” this trip is “relevant for Europe” because it contributes to strengthening its “relations with other countries,” he continued. “The world is very large, and Europe must be open to other powers and regional blocs,” he added.
“There are multiple opportunities that the European Union must seize in this rapidly changing international context to place itself at the center and lead the defense of a rules-based international order,” Pedro Sánchez stated. “We are actively working to reach out to the Global South and to such important powers as China,” he concluded, and in this context, Spain wants to “contribute” to the rapprochement between the EU and China.
This is Pedro Sánchez’s third visit to China in just two years. The previous two took place in March 2023, when he discussed Beijing’s twelve-point proposal to end the conflict in Ukraine with President Xi Jinping, and in September 2024, when he advocated for a negotiated solution to the tariff crisis between China and the EU.
