European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on Thursday to address the “imbalances and differences” between the European Union and China at her first in-person summit in more than four years.
“China is the EU’s most important trading partner,” reminded Ursula von der Leyen, “but there are clearly imbalances and differences that we need to address.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping, meeting with Ms. von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel in Diaoyutai, the Chinese government's state, called for “to respond together to global challenges and work together to promote stability and prosperity in the world.” “. Villa in Beijing.
“China and the EU should be partners in mutually beneficial cooperation,” he added, stressing the importance of “political trust” between the two partners.
For his part, Charles Michel assured that the EU wants “a stable and mutually beneficial relationship with China”.
But “of course today we will promote our European values, including human rights and democracy,” he assured.
The summit – the first face-to-face meeting in more than four years – comes at a time of resumption of diplomatic exchanges between Brussels and Beijing, at the end of the Covid-19 pandemic that had isolated China from the rest of the world.
For several months, several EU commissioners have traveled to the country to personally restart the dialogue.
“Protect our market”
However, there are still many disagreements between the EU and its largest economic partner, be it the large trade deficit or the war in Ukraine, two topics that should be the focus of discussions on Thursday.
“European leaders will not tolerate a trade imbalance in the long term,” Ms von der Leyen warned in an interview with AFP in Brussels on Tuesday.
“We have tools to protect our market,” she emphasized, while expressing her preference for “negotiated solutions.”
According to Ms von der Leyen, the European Union's trade deficit with China has doubled in two years and will reach a record 390 billion euros in 2022.
Beijing responded on Wednesday that the European Union's export policy toward China, which includes restrictions on the export of high-tech products, makes “no sense.”
At this summit, China will try to “protect its image as a global player and give European players certainty about the direction the Chinese economy is heading,” said Grzegorz Stec, an analyst at Chinese think tank Merics.
On the eve of the EU-China summit, a source within Giorgia Meloni's government told AFP that Italy would withdraw from the New Silk Roads agreement with China.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had already declared before taking office at the end of 2022 that her country's adherence to Beijing's massive investment program – described by many as a Trojan horse to gain political influence – was a “serious mistake”.
“No trust at all”
The war between Israel and Hamas and the Russian offensive in Ukraine will also be on the agenda.
Beijing has been regularly criticized by the West on the Ukraine issue. Because while China demands respect for the territorial integrity of all countries – including Ukraine – it has never publicly condemned Moscow.
In October, Vladimir Putin was also welcomed in Beijing by Mr. Xi, who praised their “deep friendship.”
The EU-China summit is likely to be different, predicts analyst Nicholas Bequelin, who notes that the European Union has “no trust” in Beijing.
“It is unlikely that both parties will get what they want from the other,” emphasizes this expert from the Paul Tsai China Center, a think tank.
“China and Europe are partners, not rivals, and their common interests far outweigh their differences,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said this week.
The tensions surrounding the autonomous island of Taiwan will also be at the center of the discussions.
Against the backdrop of the climate negotiations in Dubai as part of COP28, European heads of state and government also want to pressure China, the world's largest greenhouse gas producer, to redouble its efforts to protect the climate.
Finally, European leaders are likely to discuss the issue of Chinese-made electric cars, which are the subject of a European Commission investigation into subsidies deemed illegal.