The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, together with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, will visit China in the first week of April. This was stated by the spokesperson of the European Commission, DW reports.
Macron also confirmed that von der Leyen would accompany him on his visit to Beijing. The President of France, in particular, is going to meet with the leader of China, Xi Jinping.
The main purpose of the visit will be negotiations on the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine.
After the summit of EU leaders in Brussels, the French President said that he asked von der Leyen to go to China to present a "single voice". Macron called on China to help persuade Russia to end the war.
In February, Beijing published a document calling for peace talks. Macron called such efforts positive, but said that peace in Ukraine can be achieved only after the withdrawal of Russian troops.
Before the joint trip of Macron and von der Leyen, the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, will visit China on March 31. He will also discuss the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine.
In addition, it is reported that the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, also said that he will visit China soon, although the date of the trip has not yet been determined.
In his opinion, Beijing's proposals to end the war indicate that China does not want to fully join the Russian Federation and the EU should welcome this, even if Western leaders do not consider Beijing's initiative as a full-fledged peace plan.
Borrell emphasized that Europe should welcome any attempts by China to distance itself from the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine. He believes that China's partnership with Russia is not unlimited, because Beijing did not create a military alliance with Moscow and did not supply weapons to the Russian Federation, despite close economic and diplomatic ties with Russia.
"This boundless friendship seems to have certain limits. China has not crossed any red lines for us," Borrell said.
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