Macron Presses Xi on Ukraine and Trade Imbalances
French President Emmanuel Macron urged his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Thursday to work towards ending the war in Ukraine and to address trade imbalances during a grand visit to Beijing.
"We must continue to mobilize for peace and stability in the world. From Ukraine to various regions affected by war, our ability to work together is crucial," said Macron after a closed-door meeting and ahead of expanded discussions.
"We know we have many points of convergence, we sometimes have disagreements, but we have the responsibility to overcome them and find mechanisms for cooperation and dispute resolution for effective multilateralism, which we believe in," added the French leader.
Xi assured that China intends to cooperate with France to "eliminate any interference" and "make the general strategic partnership between China and France more stable."
Macron also called on China for "cross-investments" to rebalance the trade relationship and advocated for cooperation with the G7 for an economic governance based on "rules."
Chinese President Xi, accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, received Macron and his wife Brigitte in the monumental Great Hall of the People, the venue for Chinese Communist Party congresses. They listened to national anthems and reviewed the guard before being greeted by children to whom Macron waved.
- Signing of Contracts -
The French president, who arrived on Wednesday night along with 35 leaders of major groups (Airbus, EDF, Danone, etc.) and family businesses ranging from luxury to agri-food, was expected to witness the signing of several contracts.
This is Macron's fourth state visit to China since he was elected president in 2017. Xi Jinping himself was received with great pomp in France in 2024, and the Elysée portrays the time Xi will spend with Macron until Friday, including in private, as a sign of the importance of their relationship.
However, disagreements with France and, more broadly, Europe, are deep.
"We have a constant expectation of China to use its influence over Russia to urge it to stop the war in Ukraine, at the doors of the European Union," said the Elysée.
China has consistently claimed to desire peace. However, it has never condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. As a key economic and political partner of Russia, it is the world's largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, including petroleum products, thus fueling the war machine. Europeans accuse it of supplying military components to Moscow.
During his previous trip to Beijing in 2023, Macron urged Xi to "bring Russia to reason." - Panda Diplomacy -
Chinese President Xi gave preferential treatment to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in September by inviting him, along with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, to a giant military parade celebrating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Macron intended to address what are seen as unfair Chinese trade practices, from electric cars to steel.
The relationship between China and the European Union is characterized by a massive trade deficit (357.1 billion dollars) against the EU.
A French presidential advisor mentioned before the visit the risk of potentially needing to "close markets," already shaken by the trade war initiated by former US President Donald Trump.
Paris is also pushing for China to invest more in France, with a sharing of technologies comparable to that undertaken by Europeans, which contributed to Beijing's economic rise.
Europeans are also advocating for better access to rare metals, in which China dominates global production and processing, a lever it used in 2025 that shook global supply chains.
As in France in 2024, the two presidential couples will meet on Friday in a more informal setting in Chengdu, in the Sichuan province (southwest), the birthplace of giant pandas that have become ambassadors for China around the world.
AFP