Why Did Xi Jinping Attend the China-Europe 17-Country Summit Instead of Li Keqiang?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Sunmi Park] Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend the China-Central and Eastern Europe 17+1 Summit in Beijing this April, instead of Premier Li Keqiang, adding significance to the event. Considering the US-China trade tensions, it is interpreted that China intends to strengthen its ties with Europe.

On the 3rd, the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, citing sources, that invitations in the name of President Xi have recently been sent to European countries for the China-Central and Eastern Europe Countries (CEEC) 17+1 Summit scheduled to be held in Beijing this April. Until now, Premier Li has presided over the CEEC summits, but this year the event will be specially chaired by President Xi.

The sources added that President Xi will deliver the keynote speech at the CEEC meeting and hold separate talks with European leaders and high-ranking officials visiting Beijing. They noted, "Traditions change according to circumstances," recalling that since the CEEC meeting was launched in 2012, Premier Li has presided over all six meetings except the first one.

The CEEC meetings have been maintained since the formation of the '16+1' summit following former Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Poland in 2012. Last year, Greece joined, making it the '17+1' summit. Participating countries, besides China, include Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Greece, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, and North Macedonia.

SCMP interpreted President Xi’s chairing of this year’s CEEC meeting as part of China’s strategy to get closer to Europe. It is analyzed that China, which is in a trade conflict with the United States, will place greater importance on its ties with Europe.

Wang Yiwei, a professor at the School of International Relations at Renmin University in Beijing, explained, "China intends to strengthen its ties with Europe. But that is also true for the European counterparts." He added, "President Xi’s preparation for the EU 27 leaders’ summit to be held in Leipzig, Germany, this September likely influenced the change in the chairmanship of this meeting."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.