French sinologist David Gosset believes French President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to China represents far more than a bilateral engagement but a rare and urgent opportunity to reconnect Europe with the world's second largest economy.
Macron arrived in Beijing on Wednesday to begin a three-day state visit at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. It is Macron's fourth state visit to China and a reciprocal visit following President Xi's historic trip to France last year.
Giving his analysis on the significance of the latest visit, Gosset pointed to the important geopolitical backdrop, and believes that by pursuing strategic autonomy, the European Union could help bring greater prosperity to the Eurasian continent.
"I would say that to have the European Union as an independent strategic actor would of course facilitate the relations with China. It is very important for the Europeans to design their own policy vis-a-vis China. It is not for an external player to tell Europe what Europe has to do vis-a-vis China. More synergies between Europe and China means more prosperity on the mega Eurasian continent," he said.
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1964, France and China have deepened cooperation in multiple fields spanning culture, aerospace, nuclear energy, agriculture, and scientific research.
Gosset believes what gives Macron's visit its broader strategic weight is the rapid expansion of cooperation into emerging domains that will define the global economy in the coming decades.
"France and China, the two countries have many things to achieve together and for me I see these two countries being at the 'avant-garde' of global cooperation. I think this is time to open a conversation more systematic on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology, green technology. We have great scientists in France and in China, and I would like to see even more exchanges," he said.
China, France 'avant-garde' of global cooperation: French sinologist
