Xi Jinping's state visit to France: the Chinese president expected this Sunday Orly

This Sunday at the beginning of the afternoon, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping Orly, for a two-day state visit to France. This trip, on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Beijing and Paris, is his third in France since he came to power eleven years ago, and the first in Europe since 2019.

Monday will be dedicated to diplomatic discussions and official ceremonies. Emmanuel Macron consulted in advance with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who could not be present, and the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will join the Franco-Chinese duo Elyse for a session which should make it possible to raise trade disputes. We must continue to push the Chinese authorities to give us more guarantees on trade issues, declared an advisor to the LYSE before the visit.

Threatened to be caught between the American and Chinese economies, massively aided by public authorities, the European Union has in recent months increased investigations into Chinese state subsidies to several industrial sectors, particularly to electric vehicles, accused of distorting competition. In response to reactions it considers protectionist, Beijing opened an investigation into imports of cognac, an alcohol mainly manufactured in France.

Paris also wants to make progress in opening the Chinese market to its agricultural exports and resolve problems linked to concerns in the cosmetics industry – a sector where France is a world leader in intellectual property rights. New rules require cosmetics exporters to share their formulas and manufacturing know-how when bringing their products into China.

Obtaining reciprocity, the objective of the Head of State

In an interview with La Tribune on Sunday, Emmanuel Macron recognizes that Europeans are not unanimous on the strategy to adopt because, he says, certain actors still see China as essentially a market for opportunities while it exports massively to Europe. He pleads to better protect our national security, to be much more realistic in the defense of our interests and to obtain reciprocity. A Franco-Chinese economic forum is also planned for Monday at the Marigny Theater, which could lead to investment announcements.

Furthermore, for the past year, France has been trying to push China to pressure Moscow to end its operations in Ukraine, with little progress so far, aside from Xi's decision to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the first time shortly afterward. Macron’s visit to Beijing last year. China being one of Russia's main partners, our objective is to use the levers it has over Moscow to change Russia's calculations and contribute to the resolution of the conflict, declared the same lyse advisor. President Macron intends to ask his Chinese counterpart to support the Olympic truce for all conflicts during the Paris Games this summer, while Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to visit China in May.

The French president will try to insist on Tuesday, in the Pyrenees, the opportunity for a more personal getaway between the two men, accompanied by their wives. A lunch is organized on the Col du Tourmalet with the aim of breaking the imposing protocol to establish a more direct dialogue with President Xi. Emmanuel Macron went there a lot in his childhood to visit his maternal grandmother, Germaine Nogus, who died in 2013, and who lived in Bagnres-de-Bigorre. This meeting is intended to echo the one organized last year in China. Xi Jinping received his Canton counterpart for a tea ceremony in the residence of the governor of Guangdong province. His father, Xi Zhongxun, had lived there when he held this position from 1978 to 1981.