Von der Leyen deepens gloom over China-EU summit with attack on Beijing's Russia stance
The speech at the European Parliament was designed to set out the hawkish German's stall ahead of a major showdown with China's leaders in two weeks. It showed that from the European perspective, the outlook for that summit is getting increasingly gloomy.
What was supposed to be a two-day summit has been reduced to one, according to diplomatic sources.
A second day in Hefei where the sides were slated to meet with business groups was cancelled at Beijing's request.
Two sources said discussions have now moved to hosting the round table in Beijing on July 24 – the same day as the summit.
It is thought that Hefei, a city in Anhui province, was chosen to generate some positive mood music ahead of the summit.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Swearing Trump slams Putin, says US will send weapons to Ukraine
US President Donald Trump accused his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday of talking 'b******t' about Ukraine, saying that the United States would send Kyiv more weapons to defend itself. Advertisement Trump's expletive reflected his growing frustration with the Kremlin leader over the grinding war that Moscow launched nearly 3½ years ago. 'We get a lot of b******t thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,' Trump told reporters during a televised cabinet meeting at the White House. 'He's very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.' Trump reiterated that he was 'very unhappy' with Putin since their phone call last week made no progress on the Ukraine peace deal that the US president has pushed for since returning to power. Advertisement Asked about his interest in a bill proposed by the Senate for further sanctions on Russia, Trump said: 'I'm looking at it very strongly.'
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
UK and France must end dependency on US and China, Macron warns
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday Britain and France must work together to counter the world's many destabilising threats and protect Europe from 'excessive dependencies' on the US and China. Advertisement Macron, in a rare address to both houses of the British parliament, celebrated the return of closer ties between the two countries as he became the first European leader to be invited for a British state visit since Brexit. Having been greeted earlier by the British royal family, Macron set out to parliament where he said the two countries needed to come together to strengthen Europe, including on defence, immigration, climate and trade. 'The United Kingdom and France must once again show the world that our alliance can make all the difference,' he said. 'The only way to overcome the challenges we have, the challenges of our times, will be to go together hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder.' Advertisement Listing the geopolitical threats the countries face, Macron argued they should also be wary of the 'excessive dependencies of both the US and China', saying they needed to 'de-risk our economies and our societies from this dual dependency'.
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Swearing Trump crudely slams Putin, says US will send weapons to Ukraine
US President Donald Trump accused his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday of talking 'b*******' about Ukraine, saying that the United States would send Kyiv more weapons to defend itself. Trump's expletive reflected his growing frustration with the Kremlin leader over the grinding war that Moscow launched nearly 3½ years ago. 'We get a lot of b******* thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,' Trump told reporters during a televised cabinet meeting at the White House. 'He's very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.' Trump reiterated that he was 'very unhappy' with Putin since their phone call last week made no progress on the Ukraine peace deal that the US president has pushed for since returning to power. Asked about his interest in a bill proposed by the Senate for further sanctions on Russia, Trump said: 'I'm looking at it very strongly.'
