By Charlie Devereux and Aislinn Laing

MADRID (Reuters) -King Felipe VI will start the first state visit to China by a Spanish monarch in 18 years on Tuesday as Madrid pursues the most active courtship of Beijing within the European Union.

The four-day trip, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of high-level bilateral relations, should further cement business and political interests with China at a time when Spain’s ties with the world’s other superpower, the U.S., are souring.

Felipe, accompanied by Foreign Minister Jose Maria Albares, Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo and a phalanx of Spanish businesspeople, will spend Tuesday in the city of Chengdu before meetings in Beijing on Wednesday with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and top legislator Zhao Leji.

The king’s visit follows t

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