China maintains normal friendly relations with all countries including Iran and Russia, as well as France, foreign minister Wang Yi said at a press briefing on Friday with his French counterpart in Beijing.

"China's position is clear, we will adhere to our support of Europe's strategic autonomy," Wang said when asked about China's view of its relations with Europe.

Europe should not be afraid of working with China because of competition, Wang said.

(Reporting by Laurie Chen, Bernard Orr and Ethan Wang; editing by Christina Fincher)