Title: Xi Jinping and EU Leaders Engage in Critical Talks in Beijing
The busy schedule for EU leaders in Beijing includes a working lunch with Xi Jinping, followed by meetings with China's Prime Minister Li Qiang, an official dinner, and a press conference. The discussions will span various subjects, including climate change, health, and more contentious topics like trade disputes.
Von der Leyen called upon China before the summit to find a compromise on trade disagreements, asserting that the EU will not tolerate long-term trade imbalances. However, Beijing responded that the EU's restrictive measures on exporting sensitive technology lacked sense.
Beyond trade, the Russian war against Ukraine and the Middle East conflicts are other pressing matters on the table. Furthermore, von der Leyen aims to address Beijing's sanctions against European politicians, including the imposition of restrictions on Reinhard Bütikofer, a prominent German Green Party figure.
Relevant Insights:
Tensions between the EU and China in recent times have focused on trade imbalances, intellectual property practices, and China's military support for Russia in Ukraine.
- The EU has imposed provisional tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, and China has retaliated with investigations into EU pork exports and dairy subsidies.
- The EU has filed a WTO case against China over its intellectual property practices, accusing Beijing of setting global royalty rates for EU standard essential patents without consulting patent holders.
- The EU has intensified scrutiny of Shein and Temu, demanding internal documents and risk mitigation, as part of its Digital Services Act (DSA) crackdown on cheap e-commerce imports from China.
Despite these challenges, there is potential for expanding cooperation in emerging sectors such as green transformation, digital economy, artificial intelligence, and new energy industries. China and the EU have also emphasized the need for mutual trust and communication to navigate their complex relationship.
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