Chinese President Xi Jinping participated in a joint video conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday as tensions between the European Union (EU) and China continue to mount.
The German government’s statement, cited by Reuters, said the leaders “discussed international trade, climate protection and biodiversity.” In addition, “The conversation also revolved around cooperation in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, global vaccine supply, and international and regional issues.” Merkel’s office also confirmed that the leaders jointly discussed the current state of relations between China and the EU.
Moreover, Merkel and Macron advocated for tightening short-term carbon dioxide reduction targets and launching joint efforts to protect biodiversity. In this regard, the two leaders spoke of the importance of ending the financing of coal-fired power stations. With travel between the two regions disrupted because of the pandemic, The Straits Times quoted the EU leaders as saying that “air links should also resume as soon as possible while respecting the principle of reciprocity.”
Meanwhile, Chinese sources, cited by Daily Sabah, said that Xi called for increased “multilateralism and cooperation” during the meeting. Chinese state-owned media house Global Times quoted Xi as saying: “Mutual respect and sincere cooperation are much needed in today’s world than ever, not a confrontational stance and zero-sum mentality.” He also assured that “China is willing to work to push forward the 23rd EU-China summit while holding high-level dialogues covering strategy, trade, people-to-people exchanges, digital and climate change.”
In addition, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV stated that Xi expressed hope that China and Europe would expand cooperation to better respond to global challenges. He also hoped that his “European counterparts would play a more active role in international affairs, achieve strategic independence and offer a fair, transparent and unbiased environment for Chinese companies.”
Tensions between the two sides have swelled in recent months after the EU announced in May that it was suspending the Comprehensive Agreement on Investments (CAI) deal with China amid repeated retaliatory sanctions from both sides. The deal would have given the EU firms greater access to the Chinese market, improved competition conditions, and removed barriers to joint-venture requirements. However, it was suspended after the bloc sanctioned four Chinese officials for “large-scale surveillance, detention and indoctrination programme targeting Uyghurs and people from other Muslim ethnic minorities” in Xinjiang. In response, China retaliated by imposing its sanctions against European politicians, scholars, and research groups.
The recent meeting between China and the EU leaders aimed to improve this deteriorating relationship. “China and the EU should correctly view each other’s differences and rationally deal with divergences and firmly grasp the general direction of China-EU relations,” Xi concluded.