French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
swimming pool | Getty Images | News Getty’s paintings
Europe’s two most significant politicians hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a time when EU-China relations are at a major crossroads.
On the one hand, some in Europe would really like closer economic ties with Beijing. However, others are increasingly concerned about Beijing’s friendship with Russia.
“I’m convinced that China has a very important role to play in constructing peace. I got here to discuss it to maneuver forward. We will even talk with President Xi Jinping about our businesses, climate and biodiversity, and food security,” French President Emmanuel Macron said. he said on Twittermoments before meeting with the Chinese leader.
“EU-China relations are vast and complicated. The best way we manage them will affect the EU’s prosperity and security,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who can be in Beijing for talks with Xi.
China was the most important source of EU imports and the third largest buyer of EU goods in 2022, underlining Beijing’s economic importance to Europe. This is especially relevant when EU economic growth is vulnerable to the continuing war in Ukraine.
The 27-member bloc has consistently been walking a tightrope as it seeks to develop economic ties with China, but additionally to reaffirm its close political and cultural ties with the USA. This task became particularly difficult as the US administration intensified its anti-Beijing rhetoric – much more so within the aftermath of the Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine, which made Europe much more depending on the US for energy and security.
“Europe has come very near the US position,” Niclas Poitiers, a researcher at Bruegel, told CNBC’s Squawk Box Europe, adding that Brussels wants to scale back dependence on China. The EU was heavily depending on Russia for energy and now desires to avoid similar mistakes elsewhere on the earth.
“Broadly speaking, the consensus is that we’d like to do something about our over-reliance on China and make certain they do not blackmail small member states,” Poitiers said.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez met Chinese President Xi Jinping last week. Europe’s top foreign diplomat, Josep Borrell, can be heading to China next week.