French FM to visit China

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault will pay an official visit to China from October 29 to November 1, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson announced Wednesday.

Lu Kang said Chinese leaders will meet with Ayrault, who was invited by his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi.

This is Ayrault's second time in China this year. His anticipated destinations include Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu, where he will attend the opening ceremony of the fifth Sino-French regional cooperation forum.

With frequent high-level exchanges and deeper political mutual trust, China-France relations have witnessed healthy and steady development, and increasingly active people-to-people exchanges have laid a solid foundation for the bilateral friendship, Lu said.

"Pragmatic cooperation in traditional areas such as nuclear energy and aviation is progressing steadily," Lu said, adding that the two countries' cooperation in industries such as finance and sustainable development also achieved new breakthroughs.

Maintaining good communication and coordination in major international and regional hotspot issues, China and France play a leading role in dealing with climate change and improving global economic governance, Lu said.

Lu said China believes Ayrault's upcoming visit will further nurture the China-French comprehensive strategic partnership. Endi