Charles Michel, President of the European Council, traveled to China for a short visit to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang. The Global Times reports that in his meeting with Xi, Michel said that the EU is willing to be a reliable and predictable partner for cooperation with China, and strengthen top-level exchanges and foster cooperation through direct dialogue so the two sides could better face global challenges. He added that the EU is willing to work with China to continue to push forward the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) and boost stability and mutual trust on supply chain issues, and deepen cooperation in areas where mutual benefits exist. Michel's visit is seen by Chinese experts and European companies doing business in China as a positive signal, according to the Global Times.
“The visit sends a positive signal and highlights that, despite rising tensions, both sides are continuing to engage with each other to find areas of cooperation,” the EU Chamber of Commerce in China said in a statement. European businesses expect that the engagement at the highest political level could set the tone for the overall EU-China relationship. “The visit is a step in the right direction,” the Chamber said, noting that “to re-invigorate EU-China relations it will be necessary to continue and deepen engagement at all levels, and to focus on areas where concrete results can be delivered that benefit both sides, including providing reciprocal access to each other's market and ensuring a level playing field”.
President Xi Jinping urged the European Union to adopt an objective and correct approach toward China, properly handle differences, promote high-level cooperation in various fields, and work together on global challenges to promote world peace and development. Commenting on Michel's visit, Shu Jueting, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), said that China and the EU have developed a strong and symbiotic economic relationship. China attaches great importance to developing ties with Europe and is committed to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, while keeping global industrial and supply chains stable, and safeguarding institutions and the rules of the world economy, Shu said.
Sun Yanhong, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the visit by Michel signals a change in the EU's stance on China. “It signals the EU's intention of not letting ideological confrontation dominate pragmatic cooperation. It also signals there will perhaps be fewer political obstacles for bilateral trade and economic cooperation in the near future,” Sun predicted. He added that even as the CAI is frozen, there are trade and investment issues that the two sides can work on. Europe, facing an energy crisis and a green energy transition, will still need the vital new-energy products made by China, Sun said, predicting that the EU will buy more Chinese solar panels this year and in 2023. China's exports of solar products surged 90.3% year-on-year in the first 10 months this year. The European market accounted for more than half of all solar panels exports, which surged by 85.8%.
It was Michel's first visit to China since assuming the presidency of the European Council. His previous visit to China was as Belgian Prime Minister in November 2016. Michel's visit was preceded by that of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in early November, during which the German leader rejected economic decoupling and bloc confrontation. Michel's visit is expected to be followed by French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni in January 2023.
Hours after Michel's arrival in Beijing, the EU’s No 2 foreign policy official, Stefano Sannino, held biannual talks on China with U.S. counterpart Wendy Sherman in Washington. Meanwhile, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell said countries don’t want to have to choose between the U.S. and China, and don’t want a world that is split into two camps.
At a press conference in Beijing, Charles Michel emphasized that “China is our top trading partner in goods amounting to almost €2 billion every day and China accounts for over 22% of European imports. China’s growth in recent decades has benefited both China and the EU and has contributed substantially to China’s dramatic economic transformation. But I also set out the difficulties faced by EU companies and investors. On the European side, market access remains very open, while in China several sectors remain much more closed. We need greater reciprocity, we need a more balanced relationship with no over-dependencies, and a real level playing field for our companies. We need to strike the right balance.” President Michel concluded: “With China, engaging openly on all aspects of our relationship is the only way forward. We agreed to continue our exchanges in light of the next EU-China Summit in 2023.”
In the first 10 months of 2022, China-EU trade hit USD711.4 billion, up 6.3% year-on-year. China is the EU’s largest trading partner, and the EU is China's second-largest. Last year, annual China-EU trade exceeded USD800 billion for the first time, and cumulative two-way investment exceeded USD270 billion. In the first eight months, the EU’s investment in China reached USD7.45 billion, up 121.5%.
