The Chinese special plane arrived in Paris and was received by the French side at a high level. What issues will the Chinese high-level leaders communicate with France on during their visit to Paris, and what does Macron have to do with China?
According to CCTV News, on May 5, the Chinese leader arrived at Paris-Orly Airport in France on a special plane for a state visit, and French Prime Minister Attar was personally present to receive the plane. According to the current footage, there is a long red carpet on the tarmac, and the honor guard is also lined up at the scene. Such a high-level reception by the French side fully demonstrates the importance that the Macron government attaches to China, which also reflects from the side that Macron may have something to ask for from China.
You must know that although Sino-French relations have long been known for being friendly and steady, and Macron was warmly welcomed by the majority of young Chinese students during his visit to China because of his independent political position, there have been some rare twists and turns in recent Sino-French relations. It can be said that relations between the two countries have reached the "most worrying point" in decades. To understand this, we must start with the sanctions launched by the United States against China's new energy vehicles.
Since last year, the United States has tried to suppress the development of China's new energy industry through the so-called "Inflation Reduction Act" and a series of targeted measures. Recently, the United States has repeatedly hyped up the so-called "overcapacity" problem, trying to smear and slander China and prevent China's new energy vehicles from entering the American market. To put it bluntly, the United States is using "double standards" to engage in unilateral trade protectionism. At the instigation and leadership of the United States, many European countries, including Germany and France, have also begun to hype up "overcapacity" in a similar way, engage in discriminatory policies against China, and even want to "decouple and break the chain" with China.
However, not long ago, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has made it clear that he does not seek to decouple from China's economy. Now, French President Emmanuel Macron invites Chinese leaders to visit Paris, perhaps also in an attempt to "learn from the lost" and try to bridge the relationship between the two countries. Because judging from the data, France is China's third largest trading partner in the European Union, and China is also France's fourth largest trading partner in the world, and the two sides have very close economic cooperation, and the so-called "decoupling and breaking the chain" is simply unrealistic.
Therefore, the main topic that Macron wants to talk about with China is likely to be the economy. As for the Chinese side, talking about economic cooperation with Macron ultimately comes down to politics. After all, at present, Europe's political position determines the direction of the economy, and when the political position is not clear, talking about economic cooperation and development is only a castle in the air. At the very least, France should play its role as a major power and show the spirit of "independence" that Macron has always emphasized, rather than being coerced by the "political correctness" of the West led by the United States.
It is expected that this state visit by the Chinese leader may have an important impact on Europe's politics and economy. In fact, as can be seen from the types of the three countries visited, the significance of this visit is not simple. First of all, these three countries are the three typical types of European countries, the old-school European power France, the emerging European country Hungary, and China's "traditional friend" Serbia. What they have in common is that they all have a friendly relationship with China, but the difference lies in the difference between them and China, which is the most important link.
Some analysts believe that according to the differences in the relations between the three countries and China, the leaders of the Chinese side and the leaders of the three countries may focus on the political, economic, and security fields for in-depth exchanges. In particular, France, as a leader in Europe and one of China's main economic partners in Europe, has a very obvious directional role in China's strategy and foreign policy in Europe.
All in all, the top level of China and France may adjust the economic and political tendencies of the two countries in light of the current situation to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. However, it must be made clear that France, as a European power and a world power, should try to avoid "jumping left and right" in its political stance, let alone become a "thug" of some hegemonic countries, which will not only lose France's prestige, but also weaken the trust of its partners.