Chinese President Xi Jinping is heading to Paris today, Sunday, for a rare two-day visit to France. During the visit, French President Emmanuel Macron will attempt to persuade his Chinese counterpart to work on reducing trade imbalances between the two countries and to leverage his influence over Russia concerning the war in Ukraine. Neither of these goals is expected to be easily achieved during Xi's visit, which comes amid rising trade tensions between Europe and China. France supports the European Union's investigation into Chinese electric vehicle exports, and in January, Beijing launched an investigation into brandy imports – most of which are produced in France – a move widely seen as a response to an increasing array of EU investigations.
An advisor at the Élysée Palace stated before Xi's visit, his first to Europe in five years: "We must continue to urge the Chinese authorities to provide us with more guarantees regarding trade issues." Xi is set to arrive at around 4 PM (1400 GMT). His official meetings will include joint talks with Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Divisions within the 27 EU countries, particularly between France and Germany, are undermining their ability to influence China. Sources indicated that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will not join Macron and Xi in Paris due to prior commitments. For his part, senior advisor at the Rhodium Group and close observer of EU-China relations, Noah Barkin, noted that "influence goes out the window if European leaders send mixed messages to Xi." Officials stated that France will also seek progress on opening Chinese markets to its agricultural exports and resolving issues related to the French cosmetics industry's intellectual property concerns.
