Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks in Beijing on Tuesday, presenting a united front in support of international law and what both leaders described as a shared commitment to justice and moral principle. The meeting, held at the Great Hall of the People — China's ceremonial venue for major political events — lasted approximately one hour and was followed by a formal state banquet.
Xi told Sánchez that China and Spain are "countries of principle that act with moral rectitude" and are both willing to stand on "the right side of history." He called on Spain to join China in rejecting what he described as a return to the "law of the jungle" and to defend "genuine multilateralism" and global peace. Sánchez responded by calling for joint efforts to strengthen multilateral institutions and international law, which he said is being "undermined in a recurring and very dangerous way, precisely when it is needed more than ever." The Spanish prime minister also positioned himself as a bridge between China and the European Union, urging stronger cooperation between the two powers for the benefit of global stability.
The meeting comes against the backdrop of heightened international tension, including the ongoing US-Israeli military campaign against Iran and its impact on the Strait of Hormuz — a critical global shipping route. Sánchez said he could think of few actors better placed than China to help defuse the crisis in Iran and the strait. He also raised the situations in Gaza, Lebanon, and Ukraine, encouraging Beijing to play a more active role in resolving these conflicts. Sánchez's government has been notable in Europe for its early and vocal opposition to the military campaign against Iran, a stance that has created friction with Washington.
On the bilateral front, the two governments elevated their relationship to a "strategic dialogue" — a designation Beijing reserves for its closest partners — and oversaw the signing of 19 agreements, ten of them economic, covering areas including trade, renewable energy, and the digital economy. Sánchez described his fourth visit to China in just over three years as partly aimed at achieving more balanced trade relations. When asked whether the visit might irritate Washington, he was direct: "Nobody can take offence at this visit."
The diplomatic signal sent by the Beijing trip is significant. As the international order built after the Second World War faces mounting pressure from several directions, Spain is visibly positioning itself as a defender of rules-based multilateralism — and is cultivating ties with China as part of that strategy. Sánchez returned to this theme repeatedly, promising that Spain would prove "brave, clear and predictable" in its foreign policy, and describing the current moment as a genuine "historical challenge" that his government intends to meet.