Watch | French President Macron gets rockstar welcome at top Chinese university, mobbed by students

French President Emmanuel Macron was given a rousing reception at a top university in southern China on the last day of his trip where scores of students made a beeline to take selfies and shake hands.

After his official motorcade arrived on the grounds of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou on Friday, huge crowds of waiting students broke into ecstatic cheers and then mobbed the French leader.

Screams of “I love you Macron” reverberated on the premises as the French president made his way amidst Chinese and French secret service officers guarding him.

The scenes of cheers and jubilation witnessedhere were in stark contrast to the tensions back home where he wasn’t even able to set foot on the campus of a French university last week for fear of being lynched by angry protesters opposing his pension reforms.

The French leader then spoke to students in the campus gym and answered their questions before leaving for an early dinner with President Xi Jinping ahead of meetings with Chinese investors.

Macron landed in Beijing on Wednesday for a three-day trip and urged Xi to hold talks with Russia and Ukraine and make efforts to end the war.

“I can count on you to bring Russia to its senses and everyone to the negotiating table,” Macron told Xi on Thursday.

A French diplomat told AFP that Xi expressed willingness to speak with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, but only when the time is right.

In a joint statement late Friday, both sides pledged to "support all efforts to restore peace in Ukraine".

The statement, however, neither named Russia nor condemned its invasion and called on all parties to respect international law.

Macron’s visit also focused on strengthening trade relations with China. He was accompanied by more than 50 French business leaders, including the top bosses of Airbus, EDF and Veolia.

Airbus announced Thursday it would open a second final assembly line inChinathat will double its production capacity in the country, with the framework for the deal signed by CEO Guillaume Faury in Beijing.

(With inputs from agencies)