Exclusive | Xi Jinping plans call with EU’s Charles Michel, as Brussels looks to steady ship on China
- The Chinese president will speak with the European Council president on Friday
- Call would follow European Union leadership talks last week on how the bloc should engage with China going forward
Chinese President Xi Jinping plans to conduct a telephone call with European Council President Charles Michel on Friday, according to an EU official familiar with the plan.
Following a meeting of the European Union’s 27 leaders last week, at which they discussed a need to “rebalance” ties with China, the call between Xi and Michel would mark the first time that the two have spoken directly since the end of last year.
Since their last discussion, the EU and China have endured their rockiest patch for decades. In March, the pair exchanged sanctions, leading to a bilateral investment pact politically agreed at the end of December to be put on ice in May.
One of the bloc’s smallest members, Lithuania, has become embroiled in a diplomatic spat with Beijing over Taiwan and has been attempting to push a tougher line on China at the heart of the EU.
Friday’s call, expected to be made at 10.30am Brussels time, may be seen as a way to try and steady the ship, with some quarters of the EU known to be alarmed by how quickly things soured over the first half of the year.