On November 10, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain commenced a landmark four-day state visit to China, their first since the king ascended the throne. This visit holds particular significance as it celebrates the 20th anniversary of the China-Spain Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and coincides with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and the European Union.
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds a welcome ceremony for King Felipe VI of Spain at the square outside the east gate of the Great Hall of the People prior to their meeting in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
The royal visit builds upon the momentum of high-level exchanges, notably following Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Spain in November 2018. It also comes amid a series of recent diplomatic engagements, including three visits to China by Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in less than three years – the most recent in April.
While meeting with King Felipe VI on November 12 in Beijing, President Xi Jinping said that China stands ready to work with Spain to forge a comprehensive strategic partnership with greater strategic determination, dynamism and global influence. Xi pointed out that the bilateral relationship has set a model of pursuing amicable ties and common development by countries with different history, culture and social systems.
What’s notable is the consensus reached by the two sides to further advance practical cooperation. Xi indicated that China will import more quality products from Spain. New energy, digital economy and AI have become key areas for the two countries to explore cooperation.
King Felipe VI pointed out that investment by Chinese enterprises has strongly boosted Spain’s economic growth and green transition, and indicated the country’s readiness to strengthen cultural, linguistic and tourism exchanges in order to enhance the friendship between the two peoples.
King Felipe VI’s China visit saw tangible results, including the signing of 10 cooperation documents covering areas such as economy and trade, science and technology, and education.
Ahead of the visit, Spain’s minister of Foreign Affairs José Manuel Albares announced that both countries would work on establishing regular intergovernmental meetings.
While this marks King Felipe VI and Queen Leticia’s first state visit to China as monarchs, it is not their first time in the country. The royal couple previously visited Beijing and Shanghai in 2007, when His Majesty was still the Prince of Asturias.
During that earlier trip, they met with Spanish business leaders from the agri-food sector and presided over the inauguration of the Miguel de Cervantes Library in Shanghai. The event has been regarded as a highlight in bilateral relations, symbolizing the cultural affinity between the two nations. Cervantes is deeply revered across the Spanish-speaking world, and Chinese and Spanish are among the most widely spoken languages globally.
The recent royal visit began in Chengdu, the capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province, a region with a population of 84 million – comparable to that of Germany, the most populous country in the EU. Covering an area nearly the size of Spain, Sichuan offers vast opportunities for international engagement, underscored by Chengdu hosting the third largest number of consulates in China, after Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Sichuan has consistently attracted global investment, with 381 Fortune Global 500 companies having established a presence over the last decades.
Sichuan’s dynamic high-tech ecosystem is particularly noteworthy. According to the Foreign Investment Guide of the People's Republic of China (2024 Edition), Sichuan offers opportunities in what it calls “advantageous industries,” including electronic information, equipment manufacturing, food and light textiles, energy and chemicals, advanced materials, and medical care and healthcare; “strategic emerging industries,” including drones, new energy, intelligent connected vehicles, satellite networks, biotechnology and artificial intelligence; and even “future industries,” including advanced nuclear energy, life sciences, biochips, future transportation, deep space and deep earth, as well as metaverse, quantum technology, and sixth generation of mobile communication technology (6G).
While in Chengdu, King Felipe VI attended the China-Spain Business Forum, Queen Letizia participated in the ceremony commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Antonio Machado at the memorial of the poet Xue Tao, where a tribute was paid to both classic figures of literature.
A notable example of this deepening collaboration is the opening of the Beihang Valencia Polytechnic Institute (BPVI) in Hangzhou on October 15, which Foreign Minister Albares attended. This campus, a joint venture between China’s Beihang University and Spain’s Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), will accommodate up to 2,000 students. Slated to commence operations in the 2026 or 2027 academic year, it will mark the first Spanish university center established in China, symbolizing a significant advance in bilateral educational cooperation.
Economically, the partnership holds considerable promise. Carlos Cuerpo, Spain’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Business, who is part of the royal delegation, has highlighted the “enormous potential to be developed.” This assessment is reinforced by the presence of 9,000 Spanish companies selling in China and nearly 600 with established operations in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu. These range from small and medium-sized enterprises in sectors like energy, financial services, and textiles to major multinationals such as Telefónica, Indra, and Gestamp. This broad commercial engagement fosters hopeful optimism for the bilateral business meetings having been held in Chengdu and Beijing.
The robust current-day exchanges are built on a long-standing foundation of friendship. The first royal Spanish visit to China occurred in June 1978, on the eve of China’s reform and opening-up, which triggered the most significant industrial and social development of the world in the last 100 years.
Notably, King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía were the first European royal couple to visit the People’s Republic of China, preceding other European monarchies, a testament to Spain’s historical role as a bridge between cultures.
The recent bilateral exchanges underscore the strategic importance both countries have placed on recalibrating priorities to navigate the complex international landscape together.
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Augusto Soto is director of the Dialogue with China Project and former global expert in the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations.
