The European Union and China are planning two high-level meetings in the coming weeks, but the talks must tackle real bilateral issues and provide tangible benefits, according to the bloc’s ambassador in Beijing.
The two sides will hold the high-level talks on the economy and on climate and the environment "in the next few weeks, hopefully,” Nicolas Chapuis, the EU’s ambassador in China, told Bloomberg Television in Beijing on Monday. "We are continuing to press for engagement and solving the issues at hand. Addressing the issues, not sweeping them under the rug.”
The talks will follow a summit in April that Josep Borrell, the EU’s own chief diplomat, described as "a dialog of the deaf,” with China refusing to discuss the war in Ukraine, human rights or other issues in the relationship. At that time, China pushed for the economic dialog to be restarted and for the two sides to continue their cooperation on combating climate change, according to Chapuis.