Genocidal Chinese dictator Xi Jinping welcomed European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Beijing on Thursday, demanding that the European Union (EU) stop attempting to diversify its supply chain away from Chinese control.
Xi stridently insisted in remarks shared by the Chinese state news agency Xinhua that Europe reject “building walls or barriers” to protect itself from Chinese dominance – likely an underhanded warning for the leaders not to accept any provisions that would hurt China’s weak economy as part of negotiations for a new trade deal with the United States. President Donald Trump is currently renegotiating trade agreements with every country that does business with America and entities such as the European Union, demanding more favorable terms for American exporters and, in some cases, tariffs to fund the federal government.
“History and reality show that interdependency is not a risk, and convergent interests are not a threat,” Xinhua paraphrased Xi as telling Costa and von der Leyen. “[B]oosting competitiveness should not rely on building walls or barriers, as decoupling and severing supply chains will only result in self-isolation.”
“Decoupling” is a common term used by economic experts referring to the practice of encouraging local companies to sever ties with Chinese. In addition to the significantly damaged state of the Chinese economy following years of lockdowns in response to the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, Chinese manufacturing is rife with state-sponsored slavery and the Communist Party routinely purges, arrests, or otherwise endangers business leaders. Most recently, the Chinese government banned an American Wells Fargo executive from leaving the country, claiming she was involved in an unspecified “criminal” situation.
China’s growing business presence in Europe has also been accompanied by significant national security dangers for the companies involved. A bombshell report in 2022 by the non-governmental organization Safeguard Defenders found that China was operating illegal police stations to persecute dissidents all over the continent. Multiple subsequent reports have documented extensive espionage activity by the Chinese Communist Party in European capitals.
Xi lectured the two European leaders that their coalition should “uphold openness and cooperation, and properly manage differences,” insisting that Europe’s trade relationship with China was “by nature complementary and mutually beneficial.” He especially touted increasing cooperation in “green and digital partnership.”
“It is hoped that the EU can remain open in trade and investment market, refrain from using restrictive economic and trade tools,” Xinhua added, “and foster a sound business environment for Chinese enterprises investing and operating in the EU, Xi stressed.”
Reuters described the meeting between Xi and the European leaders as “tense” and expected to yield no significant progress in the relationship between the rogue communist state and Europe. The news agency reported that China requested the limit the visit to one day after “wrangling” over the terms of the engagement.
China’s close relationship to Russia has been a point of contention for months between the two parties, though Xinhua did not mention this as a topic of discussion. During his regular press briefing on Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun answered a question about Europe’s concerns over the China-Russia relationship by dismissing it as irrelevant.
“Let me stress that the exchanges between China and Russia do not target any third party and should not be affected by any third party,” Guo insisted.
The spokesman instead emphasized the “50th anniversary of China-EU diplomatic relations and the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations” as occasions for increasing Europe’s reliance on China.
“The important experiences and lessons from them are mutual respect, seeking common ground while shelving differences, open cooperation and mutual benefits,” Guo claimed. “China and the EU both advocate multilateralism and openness and cooperation. The more severe and complex the international landscape becomes, the more necessary it is that China and the EU should strengthen communication, enhance mutual trust and deepen cooperation.”
China became the European Union’s largest trade partner in 2020, in the immediate aftermath of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, overtaking America. Beijing has benefitted handsomely from the willing economic engagement of states led by China-friendly leaders such as Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, though that momentum slowed somewhat as conservative leaders such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni cut ties to China’s predatory Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). China’s close relationship to Russia, and years of reports that Beijing is actively aiding the Russian economy in its quest to undermine the effects of European sanctions in response to its invasion of Ukraine, have also challenged China’s influence in the region.
The EU is attempting to balance its relationship with China with ongoing trade talks with the White House. President Donald Trump has expressed some frustration with the European Union, accusing its leaders of “slow walking” negotiations in May and demanding a friendlier business environment there for Americans. Shortly before Trump’s “slow walking” allegation, von der Leyen told reporters that the EU had offered a “zero-for-zero tariff” agreement on industrial goods and emphasized the EU’s ambition to diversify its supply chains – an indirect message to China.
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