Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up a high-profile tour of Europe on Friday, amid concerns in Europe over China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine and cheap Chinese-made electric cars flooding the European market.
Xi’s first trip to the region since 2019 also comes amid growing suspicions that China is seeking to exploit Europe’s divisions. And analysts said Xi’s itinerary was no coincidence.
Bertram Lang, a research fellow at Frankfurt’s Goethe University who specializes in Chinese foreign policy, said France, Serbia and Hungary, all of which Xi has visited, have “special bilateral relations” with Beijing. Ta.
Lang added that the Chinese leadership has gradually divided Europe into two groups: “China-friendly groups and unfriendly groups.” And this trip was aimed at highlighting the relationship with the former.
President Xi pursues France’s trade imbalance
President Xi began his visit to France, focusing on the war in Ukraine and the trade imbalance with the EU during a two-day state visit and meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.
While China and Mr. Xi prefer to engage at a bilateral level, President Macron sought to demonstrate European unity by involving European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who recently completed a visit to China, was invited to Paris but did not attend. However, Scholz and Macron met ahead of Xi’s visit on May 2 and confirmed the basics of China policy.
Ms von der Leyen’s public comments in Paris took direct aim at what she called China’s “market distorting practices”, including massive subsidies for electric cars and the steel industry. .
China has been criticized for having “overcapacity” and dumping low-cost products onto the EU and US markets.
The European Commission has announced it will launch an anti-subsidy investigation to determine whether to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese electric cars and solar panels.
During the tripartite talks in Paris, von der Leyen told Xi that Europe “remains steadfast in taking the tough decisions necessary to protect our economies and security.”
In response to Mr. von der Leyen’s remarks, President Xi said that there is no such thing as “China’s overcapacity problem,” neither from the perspective of comparative advantage nor from the perspective of global market demand, state broadcaster said. . Xinhua News Agency report.
Zusa Anna Ferenczi, a former political adviser in the European Parliament, told DW that there is “increasing convergence among member states in the EU” and a “very determined coalition” to level the playing field in trade with China. Committee,” he said.
Nevertheless, Chinese state media portrayed Xi’s visit to France as a success.report of Global Times He called the 18 “cooperation agreements” between government agencies in aviation, agriculture, people-to-people exchanges, green development and small and medium-sized enterprises cooperation “a positive signal for European entrepreneurs” and against economic “decoupling”. “It is a stabilizer of trade relations between China and Europe.” . ”
President Xi builds stone walls in Ukraine
As for Ukraine, Beijing has not yet convinced its leaders not to support Russia in the Ukraine war. China has also resisted calls from European and U.S. leaders to use its influence on Russia to play a constructive role in ending the conflict.
This is despite Mr. Xi supporting Mr. Macron’s call for an “Olympic truce” in all global conflicts during the Summer Games in Paris.
The United States said China provides Russia with technology used in machine tools, drone engines and cruise missiles. China also helps support the Russian economy by supplying industrial and consumer goods.
Mr. Xi strongly responded to these accusations in a public speech in Paris, claiming that the Ukraine crisis is being “used to shift responsibility onto third countries, tarnish their image and incite a new Cold War.” He added that China was “not taking part” in the crisis.
Jean-Philippe Beja, a China expert and senior researcher at the Center for International Studies at Paris’ Polytechnic Institute (CISR), told DW that during the meeting, Xi acknowledged that Russia’s war with Ukraine was “a problem”. He said he was made to do so. Life and death for Europe. ”
“This is a very negative factor for Sino-European relations,” Beja said.
Ahead of Xi’s visit, Chinese state media praised Macron’s continued insistence on Europe’s “strategic autonomy” and called on the European Union to be more proactive on strategic and defense issues. Ta. China interprets this as a rejection of NATO and the US-led collective strategy.
After visiting China in April 2023, Macron made comments warning that Europe would become embroiled in a U.S.-China conflict over Taiwan, a U.S. ally that is Washington’s “vassal.” It drew criticism for comments that said it was not what it meant.
Writing about Xi’s visit, Francois Godeman, a senior fellow at the French think tank Institut Montaigne, said that while Macron demonstrated European unity, he tried to “minimize these aspects” in the talks. Ta.
Building infrastructure in Serbia
Xi’s visit struck a more upbeat note in Serbia and Hungary, both of which receive significant Chinese investment and have close ties with Russia.
Although Serbia is not an EU member state, Xi’s visit to Belgrade will project the image of the Chinese leader as “an important figure not only in the EU but also in the EU’s neighboring countries,” said Ferenczi, who is also an assistant professor at National Taiwan University. Told. Donghua University.
Serbia is a major European recipient of Chinese loans under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for projects such as high-speed rail connections to Hungary. Chinese companies are also involved in the construction of sewers and sewage treatment plants, and operate large-scale steel plants.
While Xi celebrated the deep economic ties, his visit was also an opportunity to attack NATO, as he arrived 25 years after a NATO bombing campaign hit the Chinese embassy in Belgrade during the Kosovo war.
“We must not forget that 25 years ago today, NATO brazenly bombed the Chinese embassy in Yugoslavia,” Xi wrote in an editorial in Serbian.
Hungarian electric car
President Xi’s last stop was Hungary, which made it clear that it would continue supporting Russia within the EU. Budapest will also play a supporting role for China within the bloc, with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government already vetoing a number of EU proposals condemning China’s actions.
And as the EU struggles to cope with the flood of cheap Chinese electric cars flooding the market, Hungary is positioning itself as a production base for Chinese EV companies.
Chinese EV manufacturer BYD announced in December 2023 that it will build a passenger car factory in Szeged, Hungary, near the border with Serbia.
This comes after China has become Hungary’s largest source of foreign direct investment.
Xi’s visit also coincides with Hungary assuming the rotating presidency of the European Council on July 1.
On the occasion of his meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, President Xi Jinping said at a joint press conference that “China supports Hungary in playing a greater role within the EU and promoting further progress in China-EU relations.”
Will it undermine unity?
Political analyst Ferenczi said China’s overall strategy was to “undermine the cohesion of the EU” while increasing the influence of individual member states.
He added that Beijing’s strategy is to tour the EU, giving member states special access to EU markets and “making these countries feel special that they have a privileged relationship with China.”
“The future of the EU and China will not get better after Xi Jinping’s visit,” she said. “There is a lack of trust between the two partners.”
Ferenczi predicts that the EU will continue to resist, while China will resist by continuing to lobby member states bilaterally to reduce their “will to risk aversion.”
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Editor: Srinivas Mazumdar
