France, China seek further cooperation in global peace, bilateral ties: experts

France and China are set to seek further cooperation in playing a role in restoring peace in Ukraine and Gaza Strip and enhancing bilateral economic and people-to-people exchanges, said French experts while commenting on Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to France from May 5 at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron.

In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Sebastien Drochon, a senior fellow of Schiller Institute in France, said the Ukraine crisis and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict are amongst the main topics of the Chinese and French presidents' discussions.

"I think one of the main topics is the question of war, because we are in a situation of great tension. There is a possibility to have a good discussion to bring solutions to this question of the war in Ukraine, but also the war in the Middle East. That is the main topic I think, because of this situation, the urgency. There was the China-France forum on global governance, where the former Prime Minister Laurent Fabius said that China and France are both countries that are defending multilateralism. And I think it's very important today to have this kind of dialogue between nations and to have dialogue to bring a real solution for peace, but also for political development, for economic development," he said.

Speaking with CGTN, Gary Rosen, CEO of AccorHotels Greater China, pointed out that cultural and economic exchanges, especially tourism, has captured the leaders' attention as always.

"The conversation between President Xi and President Macron is one that's always been consistent. And at the top of their discussion points is always the importance of cultural exchange and tourism. And you have to really respect the fact that both countries understand the importance of the economic exchange. Tourism is a big part of that, and certainly when you talk about the service industries. So I think there's no question that both presidents understand the importance of the exchange, not just of culture, but the idea of both French citizens visiting China, China citizens visiting France," he said.

France, China seek further cooperation in global peace, bilateral ties: experts

Shanghai, China's financial hub, and several other eastern Chinese cities have been flooded due to Typhoon Pulasan, and drainage efforts are in full swing.

Pulasan, the 14th typhoon of the year, made its second landfall in Shanghai's Fengxian District at around 21:45 on Thursday after first making landfall earlier that day in Zhejiang Province.

Since midnight on Friday, parts of Shanghai's Pudong New Area have experienced increasingly heavy rainfall, resulting in flooded streets and temporary school closures.

Local authorities have intensified drainage efforts on waterlogged roads and in swamped neighborhoods.

Similarly, in neighboring Jiangsu Province, Rugao, a county-level city, was hit by a downpour from 7:00 to 17:00 on Friday. By 18:00, local firefighters had responded to more than 60 cases, carrying out drainage and rescue operations.

Typhoon Pulasan deluges eastern Chinese cities