The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed this Thursday her “satisfaction” at reaching an agreement with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, on the need for more balanced trade relations between the European Union (EU) and China.
“I am very pleased to have agreed with President Xi that trade relations must be balanced between us,” said Von der Leyen after the work of the EU-China summit, which took place in Beijing, the first high-level face-to-face meeting. meeting since 2019.
Previously, Von der Leyen had stressed that China remains “the EU’s most important trading partner”, despite referring to “imbalances and disputes that we must address.”
For his part, and after the meeting with Von der Leyen and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, Xi Jinping called for “a joint response to global challenges” and to work “together to promote stability and prosperity in the world.”
Also present in Beijing, Charles Michel assured that the EU wants “a stable and mutually beneficial relationship with China.”
But, the representative stressed, “naturally, today we will promote European values, including human rights and democracy.”
The EU-China summit takes place at a time when direct diplomatic contacts between Brussels and Beijing have resumed, in the last period of the Covid-19 pandemic that isolated the Asian giant from the rest of the world.
Several European commissioners have traveled to the country in recent months to resume dialogue.
Despite the optimistic tone, numerous issues of division persist between the EU and Beijing, from the significant trade deficit to the war in Ukraine, two central themes in this Thursday’s discussions.
The EU’s trade deficit with China doubled in two years to reach a record €390 billion in 2022, according to Von der Leyen.
China’s objective at this summit is “to protect its image as a global player and reassure European actors about the direction followed by the Chinese economy,” Grzegorz Stec, an analyst at the Merics think tank, told AFP about China.
The war between Israel and Hamas and the Russian offensive in Ukraine were also topics that dominated the meeting.
“We would like China to show more firmness,” said Charles Michel, urging Beijing to “condemn this war provoked by Russia against Ukraine.”
“Since the beginning of the war, we have clearly indicated that the way China positions itself in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine (…) would also define our relationship,” Ursula von der Leyen stressed, in turn.
Westerners have often criticized Beijing over the Ukraine issue.
Although China calls for respect for the territorial integrity of all countries, implicitly including Ukraine, it has never publicly condemned Moscow for its invasion of the country in February 2022.
In October, Russian President Vladimir Putin was also received in Beijing by Xi Jinping, who praised the “deep friendship” between the two countries.
Speaking to the media, a Chinese Foreign Ministry official hinted today that Beijing has no intention of influencing Moscow.
“President Putin makes his decisions based on his own interest and national security,” said Wang Lutong, director general of the European department of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Referring to the tensions around the island of Taiwan, Charles Michel stated after the bilateral meetings that “concern remains about the growing tensions in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.”
“I intend to believe that China is fully aware of the serious consequences of escalation in this region,” he added.
Within the framework of the climate change negotiations (COP28) taking place in Dubai, European leaders also intend to pressure China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, to redouble its climate efforts.
Von der Leyen told reporters that China’s intentions in the field of renewable energy are “exceptional” and welcomed Beijing’s support for global efforts to reduce polluting emissions.
However, he added that he had indicated to his Chinese interlocutors that the 27 EU member states remain “very concerned about the growing presence of coal-fired power plants in China.”
Finally, European leaders also addressed the issue of electric vehicles produced in China, the subject of an investigation by the European Commission due to subsidies considered illegal.
Source: TSF
