BEIJING – China and France should seize opportunities and expand the scope of cooperation, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Beijing on Thursday.

China and France should consolidate cooperation in traditional fields such as aviation, aerospace, and nuclear energy, and tap into the potential for cooperation in areas including the green economy, digital economy, biopharmaceuticals, artificial intelligence, and new energy, said the Chinese leader.

He also said China and the European Union should uphold their positioning as partners, and advance cooperation with an open attitude.

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For his part, Macron said France attaches great importance to relations with China and firmly adheres to the one-China principle.

France is willing to continuously deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two sides, he added.

After their talks, the two presidents jointly witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents on nuclear energy, agriculture, food, education and ecological environment.

They attended and addressed the closing ceremony of the seventh meeting of China-France Business Council in the Chinese capital.

Addressing the event, Xi said the two sides should respond to uncertainties in today's world with the stability of China-France relations.

Xi called on both sides to continuously expand new areas of bilateral economic and trade cooperation, keep fostering new progress in mutually beneficial China-EU cooperation, and jointly make fresh contributions to the reform and improvement of global governance.

They later jointly met the press.

Xi told the media that both sides agreed to deepen exchanges and cooperation in culture, education, science and technology, and subnational areas, and launch a new round of cooperation in the protection of giant pandas.