Spain’s premier meets with Chinese foreign minister

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez met with the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday to discuss international relations and boost bilateral cooperation.

“China is a fundamental partner in our fight against climate change and for global stability and peace,” Sanchez posted on X after the meeting.

This is the highest-level official to have visited Spain since President Xi Jinping, alongside Wang, visited the country in 2018.

On Sunday, Wang met with his counterpart Jose Manuel Albares, where they announced that China would lift a 24-year ban on imports of beef from Spain. Speaking to the press, the Chinese foreign minister said it was “good news, especially for Spanish farmers.”

“It is hard to find a market like the Chinese market,” said Albares on Sunday, praising the announcement.

Wang told a press conference that he “highly” appreciated Albares for his “firm commitment to the One-China principle.”

China and Spain also agreed to expand cooperation into new areas like electric vehicles, green energy, and the digital economy, according to a Chinese readout from Monday reported by the South China Morning Post.

Later on Monday, Spain’s King Felipe VI is set to receive China’s top diplomat at the Zarzuela Palace.

Before he visited Spain, Wang attended the Munich Security Conference, where he told US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken that if Washington wants stability in the Taiwan Strait, it should abide by the one-China principle.

After this visit, the Chinese diplomat is set to hold meetings with authorities in France, marking the first important visit between the two countries this year.