French first lady Brigitte Macron has reunited with a giant panda born in France during a visit to China with President Emmanuel Macron.

CHENGDU: Surrounded by security, French President Emmanuel Macron made his way through crowds of young fans screaming in excitement at a university in southern China on Friday (Dec 5), receiving a greeting more reminiscent of a rockstar than a politician.

BEIJING, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Chinese leader Xi Jinping accompanied French President Emmanuel Macron to Chengdu on Friday, a rare gesture seemingly reserved for the head of Europe's second-largest economy that highlights Beijing's focus on Paris in its ties with the European Union.

French leader Emmanuel Macron concluded his fourth state visit to China on Friday, striking a more relaxed note in the city of Chengdu after tough discussions on Ukraine and trade with his counterpart Xi Jinping a day earlier.

During a state visit, the French president urged President Xi Jinping to take a harsher stance on Russia and smooth out trade imbalances. Despite signing 12 agreements, Xi’s remained noncommittal on these larger questions.

French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to China this week for his fourth state visit, as Europe seeks to balance economic and security threats from Beijing with reliance on the world's second-largest economy during a time of global trade turmoil.

French President Emmanuel Macron concluded his three-day state visit to China on Friday, with the enthusiastic welcome he received at Sichuan University in Southwest China's Sichuan Province quickly becoming a trending topic on Chinese social media.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday toured one of the world's oldest irrigation systems alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping as he continued his three-day visit to China.