European Union leaders urge Xi Jinping to drop Hong Kong national security law, or risk ‘negative consequences’

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‘China risks very negative consequences’ if it imposes national security law, says European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

But she sidesteps questions as to the exact measures the EU would take

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Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen via video link in Beijing on Monday. Photo: Xinhua

Stuart Lau

Published: 2:20am, 23 Jun 2020Updated: 7:38am, 23 Jun 2020

European Union leaders warned President Xi Jinping of “very negative consequences” over Beijing’s plan to introduce a national security law in Hong Kong, while pressing for progress on market access and climate change in a sign of Europe’s hardening approach to China.

In a show of EU’s impatience, Ursula von der Leyen, who leads the European Commission, called on Chinese leaders to step up the political attention for the ongoing investment talks by the “end of summer” in order to clinch a treaty by year end.

Xi, on his part, fended off the EU’s categorisation of China as a rival, pledging to work together with the bloc on cooperation and upholding multilateralism.

Xi’s call with von der Leyen and European Council president Charles Michel followed the duo’s summit with Premier Li Keqiang earlier in the day, where Covid-19 related economic issues, EU-China relations, Hong Kong’s situation and other international issues were on the agenda.

Chinese state media made no reference about what Xi and Li said on Hong Kong. The national security legislation for the city is expected to be passed by June 30.

“The national security law risks seriously undermining the ‘one country, two systems’ principle,” von der Leyen said in a press conference after the summit. “We also conveyed that China risks very negative consequences if it goes forward with imposing this law.”

“The European Union is in touch with our G7 [Group of Seven] partners on this, and we have made our position very clear to the Chinese leadership today and urge them to reconsider,” she said. “Of course they have a different standpoint than us, but this is our very clear standpoint we conveyed to the Chinese leadership.”

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Hongkongers fearing national security law see BN(O) passports as sign of hope