But Chinese expert Ardi Bouwers dares to doubt whether both sides will really listen to each other. Talk about a “conversation between the deaf”. “The world has changed, as Von der Leyen said earlier,” says Bouwers. “And especially from a European perspective because of the war in Ukraine and the rather wholehearted support of the Chinese side for Russia.”
And that while you think it seems that China has remained in the old era, and still hopes that the old investment treaty – which has been endlessly negotiated between the Chinese and Europe – will be revived. “So those will be interesting conversations.”
Unbalanced relationship
European journalist Stefan de Vries expects von der Leyen to use strong language when he visits Xi, while the relationship between Europe and China is not fully balanced. “China actually has the upper hand,” he says. “Certainly given the technology, the size of the country, the geographic location, the possible upgrading of the military, so we look at China with fear.”
“China has the upper hand”
As an example, De Vries cites Xi’s visit to Putin, which made many European capitals nervous. And meanwhile, the Chinese president remains his stolid self, because he’s incredibly unflappable. He knows he’s getting the longest end of the stick for now.’
Dichotomy
According to the expert Bouwer, a dichotomy can therefore be discovered in the speech that Von der Leyen gave today on the visit. In the first half, Bouwer calls her sharp and tough, while he finds the opener in the second half. “Von der Leyen also says there is ‘room for discussion about a partnership’, while the first half is about competition and rivalry,” says Bouwer. “And she sees some islands of opportunity, so she’s trying to convey a double message.”
And he never mentioned the United States, Bouwer points out, while the relationship between China and the United States has deteriorated greatly. “And the fact that you don’t mention it at all, China could interpret that as Europe doesn’t want to deal with China in that escalation way.”