During visit to Europe, Chinese president faces pressure over trade practices and cites dialogue to resolve disputes
French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pressed Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a trade balance between China and Europe. The leaders gathered this Monday (May 6, 2024) at the Élysée Palace in Paris.
Xi Jinping’s first visit in 5 years to the European continent takes place in a context of trade tensions. While the European Union calls for investigations into the subsidies applied to Chinese industries by Beijing, the Asian country calls for investigations into imports of French cognac.
Von der Leyen https://twitter.com/vonderleyen/status/1787434966621560837 the challenges faced by the EU due to “huge overproduction of Chinese industrial goods flooding the European market”. She said unequal market access and Chinese state subsidies harm the relationship between Europe and China.
Xi Jinping recognized the importance of resolving economic and trade disputes through dialogue and pledged efforts to rebalance trade with France.
“As two important forces, China and the EU should adhere to the position of partnership, persist in dialogue and cooperation, deepen strategic communication, strengthen mutual trust, build consensus and carry out strategic actions”, he said.
Macron took the opportunity to ask the Chinese leader to influence Russia to seek an end to the conflict with Ukraine, highlighting China’s crucial role in global geopolitics.
However, Xi stressed that China, despite supporting a quick political solution to the conflict, is not “creator” or a “part” of war.
“China is neither the creator nor the party to the Ukraine crisis. He has worked hard to persuade peace and promote talks. China’s objective and impartial stance and constructive role have been widely recognized by the international community.”he declared.
