EU-China Relations at a Crossroads Amid Tensions and Mutual Interests

Strategic Insights -

Top European Union officials Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa are set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing as the EU and China mark 50 years of diplomatic relations. The summit comes amidst simmering tensions over issues such as human rights, political oppression, and trade, despite Beijing's offer of an olive branch to Brussels. The meeting is seen as a chance to reset relations, but expectations are low among Western observers for any major breakthroughs.

Key Takeaways:

  • The EU and China have frequently sparred over human rights and political oppression in locations including Hong Kong, Tibet, and Xinjiang, with the EU imposing sanctions on Chinese officials in 2021.
  • China responded with sanctions of its own on 10 Europeans, including members of the European Parliament, and several think tanks, with Beijing lifting sanctions on the European MEPs in April as a gesture of goodwill before the EU-China summit.
  • The EU and China have also clashed over Beijing's close relationship with Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with China buying Russian energy exports and accused of skirting arms embargoes by selling "dual-use" goods to Russia.
  • The summit comes amid ongoing tensions over trade, with the EU concerned about its ballooning trade deficit with China, which doubled in value between 2015 and 2024 to reach 305.8 billion euros ($359bn) last year.
  • European officials are alarmed by China's economic ties with Russia, including the reported sale of "dual-use" goods to Russia, and the EU has accused China of enabling Russia's war against Ukraine.
  • Beijing has defended its actions, saying that it has long wanted to see a "negotiation, ceasefire and peace" in Ukraine, but European officials remain skeptical about China's intentions.

Statistics:

  • Over 50 years of diplomatic relations between the EU and China.
  • In 2021, the EU imposed sanctions on Chinese officials for their oppression of ethnic minority Uighur Muslims.
  • China responded with sanctions of its own on 10 Europeans, including members of the European Parliament, and several think tanks.
  • The trade deficit between the EU and China doubled in value between 2015 and 2024 to reach 305.8 billion euros ($359bn) last year.
  • In 2022, Beijing approved the sale of Russian energy exports.
  • In June 2022, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reportedly told his EU counterpart that Beijing did not want to see Russia lose the war against Ukraine because it would free up the US's attention.

Sources:

  • The Financial Times (report citing people familiar with the matter)
  • China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (formal confirmation of the meeting)
  • Marina Rudyak, an assistant professor at the Institute of Chinese Studies at Germany's Heidelberg University (interview with Al Jazeera)
  • Guo Jiakun, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson (remarks at a meeting with reporters)
  • William Yang, a senior analyst for Northeast Asia at the Crisis Group (interview with Al Jazeera)
  • EU trade data (trade deficit with China)
  • Wang Yi-wei, the director of the EU Research Centre at Renmin University in the Chinese capital (remarks shared with Al Jazeera)
  • Marta Mucznik, a senior EU analyst at the Crisis Group (interview with Al Jazeera)