French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in China on Wednesday, December 3, 2025, for a three-day state visit, where he is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. The talks will focus on trade relations and efforts to advance a ceasefire in Ukraine, nearly four years into the war.
This marks Macron’s fourth state visit to China since taking office in 2017. During his time in Beijing, he is meeting with senior Chinese leaders at the Great Hall of the People. Afterwards, the French delegation will travel to Chengdu in Sichuan Province, where two giant pandas recently returned to China from France.
Ahead of the visit, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot emphasized Macron’s intent to push China, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, to apply pressure on Russia. “We are counting on China, like us a permanent member of the Security Council… to lean on Russia, so that Russia and, in particular, [Russian President] Vladimir Putin can finally agree to a ceasefire,” Barrot said during a radio interview with French broadcasters Monday.
Barrot also stated, “China can play a crucial role in guiding Vladimir Putin’s Russia to make the right decision.” This message reiterates appeals Macron previously made during a visit to China in April 2023 and during Xi’s visit to France in May 2024, which did not yield significant results.
While Beijing consistently advocates for peace talks and respect for national sovereignty, it has not condemned Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Western governments accuse China of indirectly supporting the Russian war effort by providing military components to Russia’s defense industry.
According to the French presidency, Macron will urge Xi that China must “refrain from providing any means, by any means, to Russia to continue the war.”
Macron’s trip follows a visit to Paris by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier in the week, who used the opportunity to ask European allies for continued support amid concerns over a proposed peace plan being advanced by U.S. President Donald Trump. European leaders fear the proposal might compel Ukraine to make territorial concessions.
“We share the view that the war must be brought to a fair end,” Zelensky wrote on X following discussions with Macron and phone calls with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other officials.
Trade discussions will also feature during Macron’s visit. The European Union currently runs a $357 billion trade deficit with China. An adviser to Macron told reporters, “It is necessary for China to consume more and export less… and for Europeans to save less and produce more.”
Macron, accompanied by his wife Brigitte Macron, will remain in China until Friday. His final stop is Chengdu, where French-Chinese diplomatic ties were recently symbolized through the return of two pandas previously on loan to a French zoo. A Chinese embassy official indicated that new pandas would soon be sent to France. The French presidency described the Chengdu stop as “quite exceptional in Chinese protocol,” adding that Macron appreciated the gesture.
During his last visit to China, Macron received an enthusiastic reception from students at a university in Guangzhou, reflecting the soft power effort underpinning such diplomatic tours.
