Beijing’s top envoy has called for China and Europe to join forces against “unilateralism and bullying” in a thinly veiled swipe at the United States after meeting European Union leaders in Brussels.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday, before sitting down for marathon political talks with the bloc’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, that were expected to run over dinner.
“The world today is full of turmoil, and unilateralism and bullying have severely impacted the international order and international rules,” Wang told Costa, the former Portuguese premier, according to a readout published by China’s foreign ministry.
“As the two major forces and economies in the world, if China and Europe insist on dialogue and cooperation, it will be difficult for camps to form,” he continued, doubling down on the need to “strengthen unity” in a “turbulent world”.
The meetings were intended to set the agenda for a leaders’ summit in Beijing and Hefei in three weeks, when the EU trio will meet China’s President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang over two days.
Leading the Brussels agenda for the Wednesday meetings were China’s ties with Russia and its prickly trade relations with the EU, which have worsened in recent weeks after Beijing introduced export restrictions on rare earth elements and magnets.
Concerning the Ukraine war, Wang “stressed that China always determines its position based on the right and wrong of the matter itself, and will continue to stand firmly on the side of peace and play a constructive role in promoting peace talks and politically resolving the crisis”, the readout said.
