“The summit is likely to underscore that both as far as the economic relationship goes and as far as China’s support for Russia goes, there has been very little progress between Brussels and Beijing.”
As she tries to smooth ties with Washington, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s tone toward Beijing has turned increasingly hawkish. In reply, China has warned against sealing any transatlantic trade deal that would harm its interests.
The elephant in the room, in addition to the long-running trade disputes: Russia’s war on Ukraine. And, right on cue before the summit, the EU listed two Chinese banks in its latest sanctions against Russia, leading Beijing to vent its “strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition” at a step that it called “egregious.”
Despite the harsher tone, Dutch Member of the European Parliament Bart Groothuis still thinks “the EU is handling China too carefully.” China’s crackdown on exports of critical raw materials are a case in point, he told POLITICO, and demand a tough response: “You’ll have to hit back with market access,” said Groothuis, who sits on the Parliament’s trade committee.
The irritants are multiplying: Earlier this month, Beijing banned government purchases of EU medical devices, in retaliation against Brussels putting up rules for Chinese medical equipment. That comes on top of a lingering dispute over the EU’s imposition of duties on Chinese-made electric vehicles last year and Beijing’s retaliatory duties on European liquor.
The setup of the summit reflects just how tense ties between the two economic superpowers have become. First, Chinese President Xi Jinping snubbed von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa earlier this year by declining an invitation to come to Brussels. Then, the summit — originally planned to run for two days — was shortened to one day only.
