context: A series of visits by foreign leaders marked the start of 2026. Li Yan 李岩 China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations explains this wave of 'looking East' primarily through the lens of economic interests.
The recent wave of visits by European leaders to Beijing reflects these countries' desire to diversify their options, argued Da Wei 达巍 Tsinghua University's Centre for International Strategy and Security director, in a recent interview with The Paper.
He explains that for a long time, Europe has relied heavily on the US, but under current circumstances, it is seeking to widen its diplomatic room for manoeuvre. The PRC’s development opportunities also offer these countries dividends from cooperation, he adds.
However, he notes that differences remain between the PRC and Europe, whether with countries such as Germany and France individually or with the EU as a whole. Da admits that Beijing cannot realistically bypass the EU framework and deal only with individual member states.
He believes Sino–European relations ought to improve and identifies two major obstacles that cannot be easily resolved in the short term
- the Ukrainian issue
- structural contradictions in economics and trade
He concludes that visits to the PRC by European leaders reflect a shared willingness on both sides to improve relations, but high-level exchanges are not an end in themselves. They are an important opportunity to advance problem resolution. The effectiveness of these visits, claims Da, depends on whether the two sides can manage their differences and cooperate pragmatically.
He adds that although both sides genuinely want to improve relations, the significance of high-level visits lies in the opportunities they create to address issues, rather than in the visits themselves directly improving ties.