Sarkozy arrives in Xi'an for three-day China visit

XI'AN—French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi province, on Sunday morning, kicking off his first state visit to China since he took office in May this year.
During his three-day stay in China, Chinese President Hu Jintao will hold talks with him. China's top legislator Wu Bangguo and Premier Wen Jiabao will also meet with him. Sarkozy is scheduled to deliver a speech at Beijing's prestigious Qinghua University.
Sarkozy said in an interview with Xinhua in Paris on Friday that he would like to work together with Chinese President Hu Jintao on many topics of mutual concern like the environment, economic and trade relations and how France and China can make bigger contributions to the world's security.
He also called for the strengthening of China-European Union ties.
The French president will conclude his China visit on Tuesday after a trip to China's economic powerhouse Shanghai.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, in an interview with Xinhua Friday, called for the strengthening of China-France and China-European Union (EU) ties in addition to commenting on international issues.
The France-China all-round strategic partnership, which is based on cooperation and mutual trust, is an extremely important foundation stone of the French foreign policy, Sarkozy said.
The partnership should cover cooperation in all fields such as economy, science, technology and culture, he added.
Sarkozy is to begin a state visit to China Sunday, his first one to the country after he was sworn in as president this May. "China is the first Asian country that I would visit after I was elected as president," Sarkozy said, reiterating France's support to the one-China policy.
France is confident that China would develop soundly, and France thinks this is a chance both for China itself and the world, he added. The French president said France and China have the common wishes for peace, prosperity and harmony.
"So, I would like to work together with Chinese President Hu Jintao. We would have many topics of mutual concern like the environment, economic and trade relations and how the two countries can make bigger contributions to the world's security," he said.
Sarkozy attached importance to the strengthening of China-France economic and trade ties, saying mutual benefit and cooperation should be the core of the ties.
"I hope the France-China partnership will continue in this direction to progress its development. We should strengthen already implemented cooperation projects such as those in nuclear energy, aviation and railways," he said.—Xinhua