President Xi Jinping and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron meet on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Group of 20 (G20) major economies in Hamburg, Germany on July 8, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

HAMBURG, Germany - Chinese President Xi Jinping and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron agreed here Saturday to promote bilateral relations and cooperation.

"The Chinese side is willing to make concerted efforts with the French side to continue to view the bilateral relations from a strategic height and a long-term perspective, and work for a better development of our ties," Xi said during a meeting with Macron on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Group of 20 (G20) major economies in Hamburg, Germany.

Political mutual trust, pioneering and innovative spirit, and fruitful international cooperation have been the outstanding features of the China-France relationship, Xi added.

Both China and France are permanent members of the UN Security Council, that pursue an independent foreign policy, safeguard the international order with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter at its core, and advocate exchanges and learning from each other between different civilizations, Xi said.

"The China-France relationship has become increasingly strategic under current situation," he said. "It is our shared historical responsibility to maintain and promote the China-France comprehensive strategic partnership."

Xi proposed that the two countries increase high-level exchanges and take into account each other's core interests and major concerns based on the principles of mutual respect, trust, understanding and accommodation.

The two countries should also dovetail their development strategies, he said.

Xi called on the two sides to deepen cooperation in nuclear energy, aerospace and other traditional areas, while exploring cooperation in new areas such as agricultural food, finance and sustainable development, thus making the "pie" of their common interests even bigger.

Xi also suggested that the two countries enhance communication and coordination in international and regional affairs, and jointly push for the peaceful settlement of global and regional hotspot issues.

On China's relations with the European Union (EU), Xi said that China stands ready to develop a long-term and stable cooperative relationship with the bloc, and hopes France would continue to play a leading role in this regard and make more contributions to the China-EU trade, two-way investment in a bid to realize mutually beneficial win-win cooperation.

Pursuing a green, low-carbon and sustainable development path championed in the Paris Agreement on climate change conforms to the philosophy of China's endeavors to promote ecological progress and the country's latest development concept, Xi said.

China will earnestly fulfil its due obligations in the agreement in light of its own requirements for sustainable development, he added.

Echoing Xi's remarks on bilateral ties, Macron said that the two countries enjoy a long history of friendship and lauded their bilateral relationship as the best ever in history.

The French side highly values the France-China comprehensive strategic partnership and regards China as an important partner of cooperation and an important force in international affairs, Macron said.

He added that the French side is willing to enhance cooperation with China in a wide range of areas, including the economy and trade, investment, nuclear energy, auto manufacturing and food.

France and China share similar stances on major international issues, and the two countries should reinforce communication and coordination within such multilateral frameworks as the United Nations to jointly promote world peace and prosperity, Macron said.