European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa plan to visit Beijing in late July and meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources.
If the trip goes ahead, it will be the second consecutive top-level EU-China summit to be held in the Chinese capital, although such events are usually held in the capitals of the participating countries in turn.
For months, EU officials have been trying to convince the Chinese side that the next summit should be held in Brussels, but have been told that Xi Jinping has no plans to travel to Europe in 2025. However, European leaders indicated that he had accepted Moscow's invitation to participate in the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Victory in World War II.
“Given Xi Jinping's reluctance to visit Brussels, our sources indicate that European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have come to terms with the fact that they will have to go to Beijing if they want to speak personally with the Chinese leader“, the newspaper writes.
The media emphasizes that the EU leaders' travel plans show “the seriousness of efforts to strengthen engagement with Beijing at a time when relations between the union and the United States have practically collapsed”.
The exact date of the visit was not specified. It is also unclear whether Xi Jinping will receive the European officials, as the Chinese side insists on meeting with Premier Li Keqiang.