Respond to prefers-color-scheme dark in app web views

Follow section front redirects in Spectrum

Enable NLP source in PCS for load testing

Switch off the News Alerts Survey Widget when we have enough responses

Poll to determine if new LUF updates are available

Allows the winning A/B test variant to be turned on without Spectrum deployment

Show infinite scrolling sections in Assembler MultiView

Show option for NLP article summaries in Action Bar

Show NLP summaries collection recirc on article pages

A general feature flag for Recipe Features that aren't yet released

Feature flag for media team features that aren't yet released

Use new Orca video player for preroll plugin in Spectrum

Show the snow tracker (instead of the heat tracker) on Spectrum

Mexican taquería’s new Michelin star puts street eats on par with gourmet food

Police believe a U.S. rapist killed several women in Canada

With its energy network nearly destroyed, Ukraine already fears the winter

Russia shows resilience. There is more to do for Ukraine.

Trump promises tax cuts and fewer rules. CEOs shouldn’t fall for it.

Tariffs against China hamstring the transition to a clean energy future

She finished chemo then got a medical degree: ‘The dream is real now’

Puppy abandoned with heart-rending note is adopted, named Minerva

Man, 91, shocks tiny firehouse with $500K gift: ‘Nobody knew how much I’d saved’

How Jim Jordan tried to connect the dots on Biden’s $8 million book deal

‘Never Trump?’ ‘Never Biden’ voters might loom larger.

Ukraine gamble pays off: Republicans face little backlash in primaries

Blue Origin to fly again as space tourism struggles to get off the ground

These ISIS news anchors are AI fakes. Their propaganda is real.

Boeing delays spaceflight again as it continues to struggle with leak

Joey Gallo returns, but Nats endure another quiet offensive night

Bryce Harper, Joey Gallo and a bond forged by baseball since they were kids

A taco will always be a taco — no matter what we call it

Biden’s false claim that inflation was 9 percent when he took office

Did Obamacare ‘massively’ increase the cost of health care?

Book Tour: At home with Amor Towles

In photos: The scene in Houston after severe storms killed at least 7 people

Civilians flee new Russian attacks on Ukraine border

The world’s coolest hotels want to tell you a story

Cruise ships to return to Baltimore two months after bridge collapse 

Some cruise prices are about to get a little more clear

At campus protests, ‘DO NOT TALK TO THE MEDIA’!

Trump’s lawyer charges Michael Cohen lied to jury

CNN gets a presidential debate — and a much-needed win

Carolyn Hax: Is it weird to ask other people to care about you?

Ask Amy: Can’t a single woman eat alone without interruption?

Miss Manners: Miss Manners: Gag gift falls flat

Trump

Yoan Valat

PARIS — Making his first trip to Europe since before the pandemic, Chinese President Xi Jinping was treated to a state banquet at the Élysée Palace on Monday and will visit the French president’s favorite childhood vacation spot. But French hospitality hasn’t appeared to resolve tensions over trade or win Beijing’s commitment to take a tougher line on Russia.

In remarks alongside Xi after a day of talks, French President Emmanuel Macron framed the war in Ukraine as an issue of national sovereignty and territorial integrity — and an existential threat to Europe.

“Without security in Ukraine, there can be no European security,” he said, adding that he appreciated that Xi had reiterated a commitment “to abstain from selling all arms and aid to Moscow, and to strictly control the export of dual-use goods.”

<a href="https://carnegieendowment.org/politika/92367">Customs data</a> suggests that Chinese companies have continued to export dual-use products necessary for Russia’s weapons production, according to a report from the Carnegie think tank.

In his own remarks Monday, Xi said his country has “actively sought peace.” He called for a global cease-fire during the Paris Olympic Games this summer, and on Ukraine, he called for a summit that would bring the parties together “on an equal playing field.” He added defensively that the conflict should not “be used to project responsibility on a third-party country, tarnish its image and incite a new cold war.”

In Europe, Xi faces a continent that has grown more skeptical of Beijing since his last visit five years ago — although generally not as skeptical as the United States.

Even before Russian tanks rolled on Kyiv, Europe was rethinking its relationship with China. Outraged over <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/02/11/china-uighurs-genocide-xinjiang/">crackdowns in Xinjiang</a> and Hong Kong and concerned about economic coercion, Europe knew it needed to change its approach.

Ludovic Marin

Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine seemed to cement a shift toward a more hawkish view, as the European Union and most of its member states reconsidered the wisdom of engaging with authoritarian regimes. In the past two years, the European Commission has led a push to “de-risk” the relationship with Beijing, focusing on trade and supply chains.

“The mood has changed at many levels,” said Philippe Le Corre, a French analyst with the Asia Society Policy Institute.

Even still, Europe remains more inclined toward China than U.S. officials may want it to be. The European approach to Chinese-owned TikTok is telling. While <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/04/23/tiktok-ban-us-start-explained/">Washington sounds the alarm about security concerns</a>, the response in Europe has been largely muted.

European countries remain divided on whether China should continue to be considered a “partner for cooperation” or, as U.S. officials argue, more of a potentially dangerous rival.

“Europe considers China a systemic rival, but it cannot do without China’s market,” said Wang Yiwei, director of the Center for European Union Studies at Renmin University in Beijing.

Beijing is eager to exploit the policy gaps between the Europe and United States, as well as the differences in attitude among European countries, analysts say.

Mohammed Badra

After meeting with Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in France, Xi will move on to the friendlier countries of Hungary and Serbia.

In his public remarks on Monday, Xi portrayed China as a country that valued open markets and had “a thirst for fairness and justice.”

E.U. officials have accused China of “flooding” the electric vehicles market. Partly at the urging of Macron’s government, they have been investigating Chinese subsidies for those vehicles. And they have threatened to impose tariffs if the investigation determines China is artificially deflating prices in a way that hurts European manufacturers.

The European Commission has also launched probes into China’s subsidies of wind turbines and public procurement of medical devices.

Von der Leyen said she had an “honest exchange” with Xi in their closed-door talks Monday. She said that China’s “overcapacity” in electric vehicles and other areas had resulted in “unsustainable” imbalances and that Europe would “not waver from making tough decisions” to protect its market or its security.

Aurelien Morissard

According to Chinese state media, Xi said during the meeting that there was no such thing as “China’s overcapacity problem,” and that he hopes E.U. institutions adopt “a positive policy” toward China.

Macron later claimed a small victory, announcing that Xi did not wish to see retaliatory tariffs imposed on French cognac, as China has threatened. The French president’s gifts for Xi had included — none too subtly — bottles of cognac.

There may be “little concrete result” from Xi’s visit to France, because while “the optics are going to be extremely positive,” the French have some tough messages to deliver, said Abigaël Vasselier, head of foreign relations at the Berlin-based MERICS think tank.

The optics will get more positive as Xi moves east. A railway between Hungary’s and Serbia’s capitals, Budapest to Belgrade, is under construction as a signature Chinese project, part of Xi’s “Belt and Road” investment and trade initiative.

In those stops, Xi is expected to try to sell China as a preferred partner over the United States. He is visiting Serbia the same week as the 25th anniversary of the 1999 American bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, which remains a lightning rod for anti-NATO and anti-American sentiment in Beijing.

Kiran Ridley

Xi’s visit to Hungary and Serbia serves as a warning signal to the E.U. about any actions it might take against China’s interests.

“While China is willing to make positive efforts toward cooperation with Europe, Hungary, as a form of diplomatic defense, could help oppose any E.U. measures unfavorable to China,” said Song Luzheng, a researcher at Fudan University in Shanghai.

The U.S. presidential race may come up during Xi’s visit, and Europe’s position might get more complicated by the end of the year if <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/donald-trump/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">Donald Trump</a> returns to the White House, Song said, adding that this could create an opportunity for closer cooperation between China and Europe.

Xi’s trip to France reciprocates a visit from Macron last year. The French president raised eyebrows in Washington and Brussels with <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/04/11/macron-taiwan-china/">off-key remarks on Taiwan</a>, the self-governing island that has never been controlled by the Chinese Communist Party but which Beijing considers part of its territory.

On his way to meet Xi, Macron was asked by journalists about policy on Taiwan. He said that the worst thing to do would be “to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the U.S. rhythm and a Chinese overreaction.”

Europe, he continued, risks getting “caught up in crises that are not ours, which prevents it from building strategic autonomy.” He has also said that Europe was at risk of becoming a “vassal” and that the continent should reduce its dependence on the “extraterritoriality of the U.S. dollar.”

Though few doubt that Europe and the United States see Taiwan differently, most officials and analysts were puzzled and angry that Macron would say so directly and publicly.

Macron repeated the “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/04/25/france-macron-europe-defense-us/">vassal</a>” language shortly before Xi’s arrival. In a speech last month at the Sorbonne in Paris, he argued that Europe needs a more credible defense policy to stand up to Russia and not be a strategic “vassal” to the United States.

Xi may have been playing to that sentiment when he noted in a <a href="https://www.mfa.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202405/t20240505_11293002.html">written statement</a> at the outset of this trip that “Both China and France value independence as two major countries.”

Chiang reported from Taipei, Taiwan.

American University of Beirut, BE in Civil Engineering

Columbia University, MS in Journalism

Ellen Francis is a reporter covering breaking news for The Washington Post in London. 

Ellen Francis

Overseas Press Club of America, Bob Considine Award, 2017

International China Journalists Association, General Excellence, 2016

International Human Rights Press Awards, Certificate of Merit, 2011, 2012

Columbia University, MS in journalism, 2007

University of Toronto, MA in international relations, 2006

Queen's University, BA in political science, 2005

Emily Rauhala is the Brussels bureau chief for The Washington Post, covering the European Union and NATO.

Emily Rauhala

Vic Chiang joined The Washington Post’s China Bureau in 2022. He was previously a reporter at Deutsche Welle in Taipei, where he covered news of China and Taiwan with a focus on politics and human rights.

Vic Chiang

washpost

China’s Xi visits France, with Ukraine war and trade on the agenda

the-washington-post

Welcoming ceremony for Chinese President Xi Jinping at Hotel national des Invalides

POOL

War In Ukraine

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Middle East

World

prism://prism.query/site,/world/europe&limit=20

The Washington Post provides the latest information and analysis on UK and European news. Includes news from the European Union, European commission news and European parliament news.

prism://prism.query/site-articles-only,/world/&limit=20

The Washington Post World section provides information and analysis of breaking world news stories. In addition to our world news and video, Post World News offers discussions and blogs on major international news and economic issues.