PRESIDENT XI WELCOMES MACRON TO CHINA- Macron arrives China for fourth state visit
French President Emmanuel Macron met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing today ahead of a welcoming ceremony, during his fourth state visit to China.
The trip comes as Europe seeks to balance economic and security concerns with its reliance on the world’s second-largest economy amid global trade turbulence.
Macron in the past has sought to project a robust European front in dealing with China, while being careful not to antagonise Beijing, whose growing assertiveness is testing trade, security and diplomatic ties, analysts say.
Beijing is stepping up to seize the opportunity to present itself as a partner for business, hoping to placate European concerns over China’s backing for Russia and its state-subsidised industrial model.
Ahead of the trip, Macron’s advisers said he would push for a rebalancing of trade dynamics so that China boosts domestic consumption and hoped the “gains from innovation could be shared,” so that Europe gets access to Chinese technology.
