GUANGZHOU/HONG KONG, (Reuters) – China’s Xi Jinping has given French President Emmanuel Macron an unusually lavish welcome on a state visit, which some analysts see as a sign of Beijing’s growing offensive to woo key allies within the European Union to counter the United States.
The two leaders visited southern China together on Friday, where Macron was due to drink Chinese tea with Xi in a former residence of his father in the city of Guangzhou, capital of the economic and manufacturing powerhouse of Guangdong province.
Such forays by Xi with visiting leaders are rare. Diplomats say it underlines the importance Beijing attaches to this relationship with a key member of the EU as it looks for support against what Xi has called “all-round containment, encirclement and suppression” by the U.S.
“All Chinese foreign policy offensives have the U.S.-China relationship in the background…so to work with any country, especially mid or big powers, like France, is something they’ll try to do to counter the U.S.” said Zhao Suisheng, a professor of China studies and foreign policy at the University of Denver.
Noah Barkin, an analyst with the Rhodium Group, said China’s chief objective was to prevent Europe from aligning more closely with the United States. “In that sense, Macron is probably Beijing’s most important partner in Europe,” he said. Diplomats often see Mr Macron as a key driver of his important policies within the EU.
Macron visited China with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, both of whom put pressure on China on the Ukraine issue, but failed to elicit official change from Xi’s position. rice field.
Still, Macron got the full treatment on the red carpet.
In a critical speech before his visit, von der Leyen described China as “oppressive”, gave a low-key greeting at the airport, and was not invited to state events with Mr Xi and Mr Macron. We cut out the image of a person who is sometimes overlooked.
In Washington, China’s diplomatic relations with France are viewed with skepticism. Beyond Ukraine, China will enjoy a rebalancing closer to Europe economically as relations with the United States deteriorate, but that change is unlikely at this point, according to the administration’s thinking. Several people familiar with the matter said.
Washington is taking a wait-and-see approach to European and Chinese involvement in Ukraine, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity. On Thursday, President Macron urged the Chinese government to discuss the war in Ukraine with Russia, and von der Leyen said President Xi Jinping had expressed his willingness to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Xi did not mention a possible meeting with Zelensky in China’s official report on post-meeting comments.
Mr. Birkin, an analyst, said Mr. Macron didn’t seem to get much out of the visit. The courtship of Mr Macron is part of a series of diplomatic moves this year as China seeks to escape US containment amid disagreements over Taiwan, the Ukraine war and US-led technology export controls.
China has increased its diplomatic spending by 12.2% this year, with visits by leaders and officials from Singapore, Malaysia, Spain and Japan in recent weeks.
China helped broker a surprise detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March, and Beijing masqueraded as a Middle Eastern peacemaker motivated by a desire to build a multipolar world.
China and her EU engagement will continue in Beijing in the coming weeks between Foreign Policy Secretary Josep Borrell and Germany’s Foreign Minister.
