Why China’s Xi Jinping’s first visit to Europe in five years will be watched

Chinese president Xi Jinping is all set to embark on a trip to three European countries starting Sunday (5 May). He will be travelling to France, Serbia and Hungary in his first visit to Europe in five years.

The trip, which will end on 10 May, comes at a crucial moment amid rising tensions between Beijing and the European Union (EU). With his visit, Xi hopes to improve those relations and boost economic cooperation.

Let’s take a closer look.

Xi’s first stop: France

French president Emmanuel Macron will host Xi on 5 May. He will throw a dinner at the Elysee Palace in Paris for the Chinese premier, according to Bloomberg.

Lin Jian, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, said last month that Beijing’s relations with Paris have “maintained sound growth momentum”.

“It is time to push the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and France to a new level and give new impetus to the healthy development of China-EU relations, to make new contributions to world peace, stability, development and progress,” Lin said at a press conference, reported Reuters.

“China looks forward to working with France to further enhance political mutual trust, solidarity and cooperation,” he added.

Xi’s two-day trip will coincide with the “60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France”, Lin noted.

According to France’s announcement, the exchanges between the two leaders “will focus on international crises, first and foremost the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East (West Asia),” along with “trade issues, scientific, cultural and sporting cooperation,” and the “climate emergency,” as per The Diplomat.

People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Macron intends to bolster his personal connection with his Chinese counterpart and urge him to convince Vladimir Putin to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

China , which has claimed neutrality in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, has a “no limits” friendship with Moscow. Despite its iterations as a neutral player, Beijing has maintained close ties with Russia. After returning from his Europe visit, Xi will welcome Russian president Putin to Beijing.

The French president is likely planning to entice his Chinese counterpart to attend the high-level peace summit on the Russia-Ukraine war being hosted by Switzerland in mid-June, according to The Diplomat.

A trilateral meeting between Xi, Macron and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is also in the cards.

Macron also wants to attract Chinese investment in France’s Electric Vehicle (EV) battery sector, as per the Bloomberg report.

“France’s Emmanuel Macron offers Xi the opportunity to negotiate with a leading EU power that’s proved willing to carve a more independent path,” Chong Ja Ian, an associate professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, told Bloomberg. The visit “is an effort to try to pull at parts of Europe that Xi feels might be more sympathetic to his position.”

Xi’s second stop: Serbia

Xi’s trip to Serbia on 7 May will come in the week of the 25th anniversary of the United States bombing of China’s embassy in Belgrade, the Serbian capital.

There could be an event to commemorate the tragedy and “some vitriol aimed at the United States and its allies,” as per The Diplomat.

According to Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin, Xi would discuss enchanting ties between the two countries with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vučić.

He said that Beijing seeks to work with Serbia, which is not a member of the European Union, and use Xi’s visit to “cement ironclad friendship”, “deepen political mutual trust and expand pragmatic cooperation” between the nations.

ALSO READ: Chinese debt trap: These nations owe Beijing big time

Xi’s last stop: Hungary

Xi’s five-day trip will end with a stop in Hungary, a country Lin described as an “important cooperation partner for China in promoting the Belt and Road initiative, and China and Central and Eastern European countries’ cooperation.”

The Chinese president will be in Hungary from 8-10 May and will hold talks with Hungarian president Tamás Sulyok and Prime Minister Viktor Orban, reported South China Morning Post (SCMP).

Under Orban, Hungary has been the most China-friendly country in the EU. Beijing has also invested majorly in infrastructure to connect Hungary with its southern neighbor Serbia.

As per Radio Free Europe, Xi and Orban will announce that Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor Ltd will open a plant in Hungary during the former’s visit.

Researchers with the China Observers in Central and Eastern Europe (CHOICE) project say in their recent analysis that Serbia and Hungary are the “remaining ‘China loyalists’ in the region”. These European countries are also close to Putin.

Why Xi’s Europe trip matters

Xi’s European tour comes amid EU’s growing worries about China’s trade practices, including limited access to the Asian giant’s market and a wide trade imbalance.

Although the bloc’s trade deficit with China has been reducing, it is still a cause for alarm in Brussels. After the EU launched an anti-subsidy probe into Chinese electric vehicle imports, Beijing, in a tit-for-tat move, initiated an anti-dumping investigation into brandy – a move seen as targeting France, noted Reuters.

The EU is also probing China’s procurement of medical devices, solar panels and wind turbines, noted SCMP. Chinese investment is under scanner in Europe over “overcapacity”.

Beijing’s exchanges with Russia even after the Ukraine war have further irked the EU.

Xi’s trip will be closely watched in the US which is sparring with China over various issues, including contentions global and bilateral topics. America proposes “derisking” from Beijing, while Russia and China challenge the US-led world order. The EU leaders have also adopted the derisking approach of slashing dependence on the world’s second-biggest economy.

France’s Macron backs strategic autonomy, wherein the EU can have the right to take a different stance from the US on China policy.

According to a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Xi’s Europe trip will “inject new momentum to the peaceful development of the world”.

Well, the world will be watching to find out if that happens.

With inputs from agencies