Brussels should not fear Beijing's closer ties with Central and Eastern Europe

In March, Xi Jinping became the first Chinese president to visit the headquarters of the European Union. He sought to move past the trade disputes of 2013 with a view to a potential free-trade agreement. Simultaneously, Beijing has pursued rapprochement with Central and Eastern Europe.

Given existing tensions, this has created concerns that China is using its bilateral relations with these countries to undermine common European positions.

The EU-Chinese relationship is experiencing "growing pains" as economic exchange between the two sides matures. The EU is China's biggest trade partner and an increasingly important investment destination for its "going out" policy, as it tries to rebalance towards internal consumption, improve competitiveness and diversify its currency reserves.

The second-largest trade partner for the sluggishly recovering EU, China is a source of fresh capital and a market with an increasingly affluent middle class.

Yet, last year, a spate of trade disputes strained that relationship. In particular, during anti-dumping investigations into Chinese solar panels, Beijing leveraged its bilateral relationship with Germany, leading Angela Merkel to criticise the European Commission. This raised fears that Beijing would pursue a "divide and conquer" strategy with regard to Europe.

The EU and China launched long-delayed talks for a single bilateral investment treaty in November last year, which China hopes to eventually transform into a free-trade agreement.