China–Spain Relations
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China–Spain relations have existed since the 16th century. Relations between
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
were established in 1973.China-Spain relations see steady growth
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History

Contact between China and Spain first occurred between the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
of China and the Spanish-ruled Philippines, in which Spain believed it could take over China. When the Chinese pirate
Limahong Limahong, Lim Hong, or Lin Feng ( Teochew zh, t=林鳳, :, : ), well known as Ah Hong ( Teochew zh, t=阿鳳, : , : ) or Lim-A-Hong or Limahon ( Teochew zh, t=林阿鳳, :, : ), was a Chinese pirate and warlord who invaded the northern Phi ...
attacked
Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
in 1574, officials in
Fujian Province Fujian is a province in southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefecture city by population is Qua ...
were willing to let the Spanish establish a trade port on an island south of
Xiamen Xiamen,), also known as Amoy ( ; from the Zhangzhou Hokkien pronunciation, zh, c=, s=, t=, p=, poj=Ē͘-mûi, historically romanized as Amoy, is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Stra ...
, in return for Limahong's capture. However, the governor of the Philippines did not respond favourably, and the offer came to nothing when Limahong escaped from Manila. In 1598, Cantonese officials allowed Spain to trade in
El Piñal El Piñal (, ) was a port in the Pearl River Delta area that was temporarily granted to the Spanish from 1598 to 1600 by Cantonese officials of the Ming dynasty. Seen as a threat to the Portuguese monopoly on the 16th century China trade, the Spa ...
, a port in the Pearl River Delta near
Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...
. The Portuguese in Macau reacted violently and chased away the Spanish from the area by arms in 1600. In 1927, a treaty recognising extraterritoriality was signed between the
Kingdom of Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist government. The Spanish consul general in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
was also the
minister plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...
to China. The
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
had diplomatic relations with Spain under
Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (born Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco Bahamonde; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general and dictator who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces i ...
.
Francoist Spain Francoist Spain (), also known as the Francoist dictatorship (), or Nationalist Spain () was the period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death i ...
's relations with the People's Republic of China began in 1973.


Bilateral relations

The volume of trade between the two countries has grown considerably in recent years. Total trade, at US$7.2 billion in 2004, had increased to $22.7 billion by October 2008. Relations have gradually improved, with official state visits and various exchanges. Spain hosted
Expo 2008 Expo 2008 was an international exposition held from Saturday 14 June to Sunday 14 September 2008 in Zaragoza, Spain, with the theme of "Water and Sustainable Development". The exposition was placed in a meander of the river Ebro. It was coordin ...
, with China being a participant, and China hosted
Expo 2010 Expo 2010, officially the Expo 2010 Shanghai China, was held on both banks of the Huangpu River in Shanghai, China, from 1 May to 31 October 2010. It was a major World Expo registered by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), in the ...
in which Spain had a pavilion. As a consequence, China has become Spain's sixth-largest trading partner. In 2018, during Xi Jinping's state visit to Spain, Prime Minister
Pedro Sánchez Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón (; born 29 February 1972) is a Spanish politician who has served as Prime Minister of Spain since 2018. He has also been Secretary-General of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) since July 2017, having p ...
refused to sign a memorandum of understanding on the
Belt and Road Initiative The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI or B&R), known in China as the One Belt One Road and sometimes referred to as the New Silk Road, is a global infrastructure development strategy adopted by the government of China in 2013 to invest in more t ...
. In June 2019, Spain had extradited 94 Taiwanese nationals to mainland China as part of "Operation Great Wall" instead of Taiwan. Both countries signed an extradition agreement in 2006. The next month, the UN ambassadors from 22 nations, including Spain, signed a joint letter to the
UNHRC The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. The ...
condemning China's alleged mistreatment of the
Uyghurs The Uyghurs,. alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia and East Asia. The Uyghurs are recognized as the ti ...
as well as of other minority groups and urged the Chinese government to close the
Xinjiang internment camps The Xinjiang internment camps, officially called vocational education and training centers by the government of the People's Republic of China, are internment camps operated by the government of Xinjiang and the Chinese Communist Party P ...
. The
International Department of the Chinese Communist Party The International Department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, also known as the International Liaison Department (ILD), is an agency under the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party in charge of establishing and ...
maintains relations with major Spanish political parties
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * List of political parties in Spain, political party ...
(PSOE) and the People's Party. Vox has maintained a critical stance toward the Chinese government. In September 2024, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping to enhance bilateral relations, focusing on global conflicts of Ukraine and economic cooperation. The discussions addressed trade disputes, such as EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and Spain's pork exports, while also emphasizing the importance of strengthening business and cultural ties between the two nations.


Trade

While most cargoes are shipped between China and Europe (including Spain) by sea, there are direct container trains running from
Yiwu Yiwu () is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Jinhua, in central Zhejiang province, China. It is best known for hosting the Yiwu International Trade City, the world’s largest wholesale market for small commodities. History Y ...
(
Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...
Province) to Madrid as well. During the Coronavirus crisis it was reported in April 2020, that 640,000 Antigen Coronavirus Test Kits which themselves were replacements for previously supplied faulty kits, bought from a Chinese company 'Bioeasy' had been found to be defective, prompting Spain to seek a refund. The Spanish Health Ministry reported that faulty face masks bought from another Chinese company 'Garry Galaxy' had resulted in infections among health workers, requiring the isolation of over a thousand Spanish healthcare personnel.


Resident diplomatic missions

* China has an embassy in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
and a consulate-general in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. * Spain has an embassy in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
and consulates-general in
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
and
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
. File:Madrid - Calle Arturo Soria, Embajada de China.JPG, Embassy of China in Madrid File:2016 Chinese Consulate in Barcelona 01.jpg, Consulate-General of China in Barcelona


See also

*
Foreign relations of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), has full diplomatic relations with 180 out of the other 192 United Nations member states, Cook Islands, Niue and the State of Palestine. , China has had the most diplomatic missions of ...
*
Foreign relations of Spain The foreign relations of Spain could be constructed upon the foreign relations of the Hispanic Crown. The personal union of Castile and Aragon that ensued with the joint rule of the Catholic Monarchs was followed by the annexation of the Kingdo ...
*
Chinese people in Spain Chinese people in Spain form the ninth-largest non-European Union foreign community in Spain. , official figures showed 223,999 Chinese citizens residing in Spain; however, this figure does not include people with origins in other Overseas Chinese ...


References


External links


Spanish Embassy in Beijing, China

Embajada de la República Popular China en España

Chinese Embassy in Madrid,Spain
{{DEFAULTSORT:China-Spain Relations
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...