The European Union and China held their 24th Summit in Beijing yesterday where EU leaders met President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. The Summit was President von der Leyen's second visit to China this year, which "speaks for the importance that the European Union attaches to its major relationship with China", as the President emphasised during her meetings.
President von der Leyen highlighted that the European Union and China have global responsibilities and a shared interest in peace, security, and in finding solutions to global challenges.
At a press conference with European Council President Charles Michel after the Summit, President von der Leyen described the occasion as "a Summit of choices". She said "it was an opportunity to explain clearly our concerns and our expectations to the Chinese leadership and of course to also seek progress in key areas of our bilateral relationship."
The EU and China are major economic partners, but it is key to rebalance the trade relationship as the EU's trade deficit has reached almost €400 billion, compared to €40 billion 20 years ago. That constitutes a great concern for the EU side. At the press conference, President von der Leyen explained that the sources of such imbalances are well known: "They range from a lack of market access for European companies to the Chinese market, to preferential treatment of domestic Chinese companies and overcapacities in the Chinese production."
"European leaders will not be able to tolerate that our industrial base is undermined by unfair competition," the President said highlighting the urgency of addressing the situation. "We like competition. But competition needs to be fair."
During her meetings, President von der Leyen also elaborated on the EU's approach to de-risk and not decouple its relations with China. De-risking is about managing risks, addressing excessive dependencies, and increasing resilience, the President explained. And it is by no means exclusive to China. "It is about learning the lessons from both the global COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's energy blackmail," the President said.
Addressing global challenges
The EU and China leaders also discussed global and geopolitical issues.
As the COP28 negotiations continue in Dubai, President von der Leyen encouraged China to join the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge which she launched last week with the COP28 Presidency, and which has been joined already by 125 countries.
The President equally encouraged China to "take a very strong position" on phasing out unabated fossil fuels by mid-century.
The EU and China will continue their cooperation on Emissions Trading Systems (ETS), an important climate policy initiative considering the EU and China have the biggest ETS in the world. "All in all, climate change is an area where China and the EU are cooperating very constructively," the President said in the closing press conference.
On Ukraine, the EU leaders reiterated that China, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, has a special responsibility in upholding the UN charter and called on China to use its influence on Russia to stop the war and engage in Ukraine's Peace Formula.
Finally, the EU also reaffirmed its consistent One China policy. EU leaders expressed concern over tensions in the Taiwan Strait and instability in the East and South China Seas. They underlined the EU's opposition to unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.
