While European Union officials have largely maintained frosty ties with China, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez completed his fourth visit in four years to the Asian country – announcing agreements spanning trade, science, agriculture, food, and other sectors. Between April 11-15, Sánchez met Chinese President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Li Qiang, and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Zhao Leji, signaling an alternative path to other EU member states.
The meetings emphasized cooperation between China and Spain in global affairs, particularly concerning international law and multilateral institutions. “China and Spain are both countries that value principle and justice, and both opt for the right side of history,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun reported on these exchanges, conveying President Xi’s observations. “The two countries need to jointly uphold true multilateralism, and reject any backslide into the law of the jungle.”
Discussions on multilateralism and diplomacy occurred amid ongoing assaults on several countries in West Asia and Latin America led by the United States and Israel. Throughout these attacks, Chinese and Spanish officials have called for an end to the violence, with the Sánchez administration being the only EU government to stand up to Donald Trump in the early phases of the illegal war he launched on Iran alongside Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
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During a speech at Tsinghua University in Beijing, Sánchez again emphasized the need for countries to work together for peace and counter those who view multilateralism as outdated. “Because a multipolar world without rules leads to rivalry, and rivalry only gives rise to wars, trade conflicts, and ruin,” he stated.
Instead, the Spanish Prime Minister suggested existing institutions, including the United Nations, should be strengthened in a way to provide fairer representation of Global South countries and others outside the West.
“In my opinion, what is happening today is not a shift in hegemony,” he said. “It is a proliferation of poles – not just of power, but also of prosperity. And this is great news for Europe. Because for the first time in contemporary history, progress is taking root simultaneously in many parts of the world – places that do not resemble one another and do not share the same culture. Nor do they share the same political system or the same social conditions. And they don’t need anyone’s permission to grow.”
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Unlike many other Western nations, Sánchez stated, Spain embraces this change. “We do so out of realism, out of pragmatism, and, without a doubt, out of a sense of responsibility,” he said. “But I would also like to emphasize that we do so out of hope.”
While adopting a more constructive approach than other European interactions with China, the Spanish Prime Minister’s visit also raised concerns about equitable trade relations, praising recent EU agreements with various countries – agreements that have raised concerns about likely impacts on local economies and rights – and proposed acting as a bridge in discussions to maintain economic cooperation between China and the European bloc.
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