French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said Saturday relations with China is full of vigor and the two sides are expected to ink a series of economic and trade pacts during his upcoming visit to Beijing.

Recovering bilateral ties

Fillon's visit, slated for Dec. 20 to 22 and to be accompanied by a large business delegation, was seen by observers as a symbol of the recovery of bilateral ties that were frozen in 2008 caused by frictions over Tibet and other issues concerning China's core interests.

"We both hope to further our bilateral ties... such a strategic partnership is full of vigor and should be strengthened with mutual trust," Fillon said in a written interview with Xinhua.

He highlighted cooperation with China in promoting sustainable development, innovation and between the two countries' small and medium-sized companies, naming nuclear energy, aviation, environmental protection, water industry, medical care, telecommunication, finance and retail as priority sectors.

Fillon hailed China's achievements since the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949 and the frequent business and cultural exchanges between the two countries.

China-France trade volume stood at 100 million U.S. dollars before 1964, when France as the first major Western power established diplomatic ties with the PRC.

The figure jumped to 38.9 billion U.S. dollars last year, according to Chinese customs figures.

A Chinese business delegation, led by Commerce Minister Chen Deming, signed more than 40 agreements, worth some 1 billion euros (about 1.5 billion U.S. dollars), during their trip to France last month.

"Amid the global financial crisis, China and other emerging markets bear growing importance to France, which is recovering from the economic downturn," said Wang Zhaohui, a researcher with the Beijing-based China Institute of Contemporary International Relations.

The cooperation mode should be adjusted because changes have taken place in China, said Zhang Linchu, a senior researcher with the China International Institute for Strategic Society.

"China is now not only a buyer of train and Airbus, but also a designer and owner of IPRs," Zhang said.

China-EU ties

On China-European Union (EU) relations, Fillon said it is of great importance and pledged that France will play its role in promoting China-EU relations.

He agreed with his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao's earlier suggestions of speeding up cooperation on energy-saving, environmental protection, and jointly opposing to trade protectionism and bolstering exchange of technology along with proper protection of intellectual property rights.

China will work with a more stable and better organized EU with the coming into effect of the Treaty of Lisbon, Fillon said.

The Treaty of Lisbon, which took force on Dec. 1, allows the EU to respond more swiftly to global issues such as defense, energy security, climate change and migration.

"We need China, which plays an important role on the world economic arena," Fillon said.

"Fillon's visit will mark the further recovery of China-France ties and will bring positive impact to the development of China-EU relations next year," Wang said.

Jointly tackling global challenges

Both as members of the Group of 20, of which France will take over the rotating presidency in 2011, France and China could enhance consultations on the new world economic rules, Fillon said.

He also planned to discuss cooperation with China on tackling climate change, improving energy efficiency and introducing renewable energies.

"China has become an indispensable participant in addressing climate change, the reform of the world governance mechanism, and the settlement of regional crisis and other global affairs," he said.

France and China were confronted with the same challenges brought about by terrorism, piracy, climate change, regional conflicts, world economic imbalance and the sluggish growth of the least-developed countries.

"We are ready to conduct dialogues and work with China to address these issues," he said.