Chinese President Xi Jinping (2nd L) meets with French President Emmanuel Macron (2nd R), along with Peng Liyuan (1st L), wife of President Xi and wife of Macron Brigitte Macron (1st R) in Nice, France, March 24, 2019. (Photo/Xinhua)

China views the ties with France as something very important, and that has not changed at all over time, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Sunday when meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Nice, one of the largest cities in France.

China has regarded France as its diplomatic priority, President Xi said, also vowing to maintain the long-term friendship between the people of the two countries.

France is the first major Western country that established official diplomatic ties with New China.

Although 55 years have passed, the duo's common pursuit of peace, development and justice have remained the same.

The duo stand by multilateralism

With multilateralism in mind, President Xi's idea of "building a community with a shared future for mankind" coincides with Macron's pledge, which has called for "make our planet great again."

"In the long run, we will have to face the same realities, and we're just citizens of the same planet," the French president said last April when responding to Washington's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement.

The two countries' successful cooperation in multiple areas including jointly combating climate change has served an active role in the international community, hailed President Xi.

The core of win-win cooperation stays

Win-win cooperation remains the core of bilateral ties. As President Xi noted, in the upcoming years, China will continue to open up more areas within the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) so as to create more opportunities.

The stable ties between China and France means a lot not just for the two, but the entire world. China hopes to see France take a more active role in promoting the relationship between China and Europe as a whole.

On his part, Macron first recalled his visit to China last January. "Over the year, both sides have carried out exchanges on various fronts following the important consensus reached during our last meeting."

Paris attaches great importance to the BRI, and is willing to further consolidate strategic dialogue with Beijing, Macron said.

France marks the conclusion of President Xi's three-nation Europe tour, his first overseas tour in 2019. Earlier, he also paid visits to Italy and Monaco.