On the last day of a tour where he repeatedly urged his counterpart Xi Jinping to assist in putting an end to the Ukraine crisis, French President Emmanuel Macron was welcomed by a sizable throng at a university in southern China on Friday.
Macron said he was trying to convince China not to assist Russia’s invasion of its neighbor when he arrived in Beijing on Wednesday.
In dramatic contrast to China’s own stodgy political system, Hollande traveled on Friday to the southern city of Guangzhou, where he was surrounded by hundreds of shouting students and admirers eager to take a photo or give the French president a high-five.
Before an early supper with Xi, talks with Chinese investors, and a trip home, Macron addressed students in the school gym and answered their questions. Some in the audience were chanting for Macron.
Macron’s first trip to China since 2019 has been overshadowed by the situation between Russia and Ukraine.
In Guangzhou, he also said that the conflict was “a manifest violation of our international law.”
He described Russia as “a country that has decided to colonize its neighbor and not respect the rules.”
“The international order is now weakened, and we have a responsibility, China and France, to preserve it and at the same time reinvent it in light of the realities of the 21st century,” he added.
In addition, Macron advised them to develop a “critical spirit” that would enable them to develop into “free, rational individuals” – another glaring contrast to the strict, state-controlled education that Chinese children are required to endure.
Bring Russia back to reality
Both parties vowed to “support all efforts to restore peace in Ukraine” in a joint statement released late on Friday local time.
The statement urged all parties to uphold international law but avoided mentioning Russia or denouncing its attack.
Macron had remarked in his discussions with Xi on Thursday, “I can count on you to bring Russia to its senses and everyone to the negotiating table.”
A French ambassador claims that Xi indicated his desire to communicate with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, but only at the appropriate moment.
Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Commission, who is traveling with Macron, praised Xi for being receptive to talk with Zelenskyy.
Von der Leyen has adopted a harder stance in her discussions with Chinese officials this week, in contrast to the genial Macron.
She warned Beijing that military supplies to Russia would “significantly harm” ties on Thursday, saying she had expressed her “deep concerns about the deterioration of the human rights situation in China” to officials.
Beijing’s offer of mediation has been shot down by Moscow, which said on Thursday that it had “no choice” but to continue its onslaught in Ukraine.
According to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, “China has unquestionably a very effective and commanding potential for mediation.” However, the situation in Ukraine is complicated, and there are now no prospects for a political resolution.
trade cooperation
Beyond the conflict in Ukraine, Macron’s visit has also been focused on reinforcing a vital trading alliance.
More than 50 French business leaders, including the top executives of Airbus, EDF, and Veolia, are with the French president.
Airbus said on Thursday that it will expand its manufacturing capacity in China by opening a second final assembly line there. The framework of the agreement was signed in Beijing by CEO Guillaume Faury.
On Friday, the company announced that it had reached a deal to sell 50 helicopters to the Chinese leasing company GDAT.
As demand for air travel rises along with a rising middle class, Asia has emerged as a crucial market for both Airbus and its American competitor Boeing.
Anger over contentious pension changes is fueling new skirmishes between demonstrators and police in Paris on Thursday, adding to Macron’s domestic problems as he travels to China.
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