Since the beginning of 2026, many foreign leaders have visited China intensively
2026-02-24
Recently, leaders from Germany, Spain, the United States, Russia and other countries have successively announced their plans to visit China, and the "visit to China fever" continues to heat up. Since the beginning of 2026, leaders from South Korea, Ireland, Canada, Finland, the United Kingdom, Uruguay and other countries have visited China successively; China is actively engaging in bilateral and multilateral interactions with its neighboring countries, Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, etc. "Looking East" and "Going to China" are becoming a trend in the international community. What signals did the "China Visit Fever" at the beginning of the year send to the world? According to expert analysis, in the face of a turbulent and intertwined world, China has provided valuable stability and predictability for global development. Multiple foreign media reports have pointed out that this phenomenon highlights China's stable characteristics in the context of global turbulence. China's diplomacy has ushered in a 'little spring'. Foreign leaders' visits to China are not just diplomatic activities, but also warm and profound cultural exchanges. China's diplomacy has ushered in a 'little spring'. ”Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao reported that since November last year, China has welcomed a wave of foreign leaders' "visits to China", including leaders from France, Spain, South Korea, Ireland, Canada, Finland, the United Kingdom, Uruguay and other countries. In response, the China US Research Center, a think tank focused on China US relations, issued a statement stating that this not only reflects the varying degrees of adjustments in countries' policies towards China, but also requires attention to the information conveyed by China during these visits. The peaceful development advocated by China should be seen as China's efforts to break the long-term narrative of security and rebuild practical cooperation space. Recently, foreign leaders' visits to China have shown three characteristics: longer travel time, rich activity arrangements, and a strong lineup of accompanying delegations. Strengthening pragmatic cooperation is a common demand of foreign leaders visiting China. They came with a strong delegation and returned with fruitful cooperation achievements: China and South Korea signed 15 cooperation documents in fields such as scientific and technological innovation, ecological environment, transportation, and economic and trade cooperation; China and Canada signed 8 cooperation documents, including the roadmap for economic and trade cooperation, and made specific arrangements for properly resolving economic and trade issues in areas such as electric vehicles and rapeseed; China and Finland have signed multiple commercial agreements, involving fields such as mining machinery, healthcare, papermaking, and green building; China and the UK have signed multiple cooperation agreements in areas such as economy and trade, agriculture and food, media, education, and market supervision; China and Uruguay have signed 19 cooperation agreements in various fields such as trade and investment... Chen Yang, director of the European Studies Institute of the China Institute of Modern International Relations, told our reporter that the series of orders and cooperation intentions signed by foreign leaders during their visits to China cover a wide range of industries, including traditional and future industries, and are a vote of trust from these countries towards China. Throughout the visit of foreign leaders to China, their footprints reach the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the CPC History Exhibition Hall, Beijing Foreign Studies University and Sanlitun in Beijing, as well as Yu Garden, the Bund, Yangshan Port and Shanghai Museum in Shanghai. During foreign leaders' visits to China, the charm of Chinese civilization became increasingly prominent: British Prime Minister Stammer repeatedly mentioned the inspiration brought by the allusion of "blind people touching elephants" and expressed his expectations for the future development of UK China relations through the idiom "seeking common ground while reserving differences"; During his busy visit schedule, Finnish Prime Minister Aalborg specifically visited the Forbidden City and exclaimed that it was an extraordinary experience. This historic site, which carries a profound history, stands tall in the modern urban center with towering skyscrapers. Such a strong contrast is shocking; Uruguayan President Orsi said that Uruguay has always insisted on developing relations with China, not only due to the material and economic benefits brought by maintaining close ties with China, but also based on a deep understanding of China, a civilization miracle with a long history, continuous development, and commitment to co creating the future... "Foreign leaders' visits to China are not just diplomatic activities, but also warm and deep cultural exchanges time and time again. ”Chen Yang said that they not only conducted government exchanges in Beijing, but also visited other regions and cities in China. This sends a signal that their visit to China this time is aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of China's policy concepts of governance, the characteristics of the era of building a strong country, and the policy direction of opening up to the outside world. China injects precious certainty into a world full of uncertainty. The intensive visits of foreign leaders to China are not only for seeking economic cooperation opportunities, but also for seeking economic advice and answering questions. At the end of the year and the beginning of the year, the intensive visits of leaders from multiple countries to China are not an accidental or isolated phenomenon, but a trend of the times. ”Su Xiaohui, Associate Researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, told our reporter that the recent intensive visits of foreign politicians to China reflect the urgent desire of many countries in the world to observe and experience China's development up close. These countries are particularly interested in China's 15th Five Year Plan and hope to seek cooperation opportunities in China. In today's world, unilateralism is on the rise, and more and more countries want to understand China's sincerity in open cooperation, recognize the importance of diversified cooperation, and hope to achieve concrete and pragmatic cooperation. In the face of rapid changes in the external environment, the steady momentum and strong vitality of China's economy, which is fighting against the wind and waves, are important reasons for attracting leaders from various countries to visit China intensively. By 2025, China's total economic output will exceed 140 trillion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 5.0% in gross domestic product; During the 14th Five Year Plan period, China's economy grew at an average annual rate of about 5.4%, and its contribution to global economic growth reached an average annual rate of about 30%... The impressive performance has injected confidence into the international community. The Chinese economy has demonstrated strong resilience and remains the largest contributor to global growth, "said Brent President of the World Economic Forum. By 2025, the number of countries and regions that have trade relations with China worldwide will reach 249; More than 3/4 of the world's countries have joined the "the Belt and Road" family; From holding consecutive exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo to the closure of the Hainan Free Trade Port... China's door to opening up is getting wider and the platform it has built for other countries is becoming broader. This year marks the beginning of China's 15th Five Year Plan. In the next five years and beyond, China will provide countries with a longer 'list of opportunities'. Irish Prime Minister Martin said that China has made remarkable achievements in formulating and implementing the country's long-term development strategy, which is admirable; Canadian Prime Minister Carney stated that China's rapid economic development and remarkable achievements in scientific and technological innovation have provided impetus for global economic growth; Orsi expects China's 15th Five Year Plan to bring greater opportunities to the world. Currently, the global economic development situation is not optimistic, with insufficient economic growth momentum and increasing uncertainty. The stability of China's economic development and the vitality of sustained growth have released tremendous appeal to the world. ”Chen Yang said that China is both the "world factory" and the "world market", with enormous potential for cooperation. The visit of leaders from multiple countries to China is aimed at injecting precious certainty into a world full of uncertainty. ”Su Xiaohui stated that more and more countries are realizing that drawing lines based on values and ideology is not feasible and do not want to take sides. During their visit to China, leaders from multiple countries realized that a single visit may not be able to solve all the problems in bilateral relations, but it is necessary to promote the positive development of bilateral relations with a positive and constructive attitude, and hope to move towards the same direction as China. The world's awareness of the importance of China is on the rise. ”Chen Yang said that foreign leaders' visits to China are not only for seeking opportunities for economic cooperation, but also for seeking advice and answering questions. They not only hope to gain some experience in governing China, but also seek answers to 'where will the international order go'. Their intensive visits to China also demonstrate that China adheres to the policy concept of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, win-win cooperation, and opening up to the outside world, which has won the recognition of more and more countries. No matter how the international situation changes, China has always firmly defended multilateralism and international fairness and justice, and is a stabilizing force in a turbulent world. In 2025, South Korea's investment in China's manufacturing industry increased by 14.1%, Canada's investment in China's high-tech industry increased by 11.7% year-on-year, Finland's investment in China's manufacturing industry increased by 21.7% year-on-year, and the UK's investment in China increased by 15.9% year-on-year. Recently, survey reports from the Canada China Trade Council, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, the British Chamber of Commerce in China, and the American Chamber of Commerce in China have shown that most multinational companies still list China as their main investment destination and continue to increase their investment efforts. During Stammer's visit to China, the CEO of British consumer health company Helion, MacLehose, stated that China is the core market for the company to achieve its goal of adding 1 billion new consumers by 2030. The company will expand production capacity, accelerate innovation, and strengthen its supply chain in China. Another accompanying multinational pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca, announced plans to invest over 100 billion yuan in China by 2030 to expand its presence in drug production and research and development. In the view of AstraZeneca's global CEO, Subaru, China is a vibrant source of innovation and a strategic hub connecting global opportunities. Recently, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, He Yadong, stated that since 2026, leaders such as South Korean President Lee Jae myung, Canadian Prime Minister Carney, Finnish Prime Minister Orbo, and British Prime Minister Stamo have led delegations to visit China, further deepening understanding and mutual trust, opening up broad space for bilateral economic and trade cooperation, and enhancing the confidence of multinational corporations to invest in and deeply cultivate China. During the 15th Five Year Plan period, China will steadily move towards high-quality development, continue to expand high-level opening up to the outside world, firmly uphold the multilateral trading system, strengthen equal and mutually beneficial economic and trade relations with other countries, and provide good expectations for the long-term development of foreign-funded enterprises in China. Leaders from multiple countries have visited China one after another, deepening bilateral and multilateral relations and injecting new momentum into maintaining multilateralism. Li Zaiming stated that South Korea is willing to strengthen multilateral coordination with China and contribute to the prosperity and development of the world. Martin said that Ireland is willing to maintain close communication and coordination with China, uphold international law, adhere to free and open trade, and promote world prosperity and stability. Carney stated that China is "stable and predictable" and is willing to work with China to uphold multilateralism and the authority of the United Nations, and jointly maintain world peace and stability. Orsi said that in the face of challenging international and regional situations, he is willing to work together with China, respect the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, adhere to multilateralism, maintain the international trade system, promote the continuous development of Latin American and Chinese relations, and safeguard the common interests of the global South. No matter how the international situation changes, China has always firmly defended multilateralism and international fairness and justice, and is a stabilizing force in a turbulent and intertwined world. ”Chen Yang said that the recent "visit to China fever" will prompt leaders of more countries to reflect on the root causes and directions of the current world chaos, to think more about the irrationality of the old world order and international system, and to a certain extent, to enhance the confidence and strength of the world's people in resisting hegemonism and power politics.
Edit:Rina Responsible editor:Lucy
Source:people.cn
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