Xi Jinping’s Strategic Visit to Hungary and Serbia: Impact on EU-China Relations

Xi Jinping plans to visit Hungary and Serbia and meet Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who, like Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, is considered one of the most pro-Russian leaders in Europe at the moment.

It is clear why Comrade Xi will visit these countries. Beijing has political and economic interests there and is trying to demonstrate its increasingly aggressive policy to the United States by viewing the Balkans as a “window to Europe.” Serbia and Hungary, which have been targeting China for a long time, are well suited for this.

Xi’s trip to Europe, which also includes a stop in France, comes after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz this month asked him to urge Putin to end the war His “clever”. By visiting Russian satellites and telling “NATO as one of the culprits in the Ukraine crisis,” the Chinese leader makes it clear what he thinks about this.

Read about what is behind the visit of Comrade Xi Jinping to Budapest and Belgrade in the material OBOZ.UA.

Under Orban’s leadership, Hungary became one of China’s main allies in the EU. Against the backdrop of opposition to European and NATO structures from the current Hungarian government, China is trying to strengthen cooperation with this country so that they move into a -against the EU and the Federation.

Therefore, earlier this year, China offered to support its long-term strategic partner in “issues of public security,” going beyond trade and investment relations. Documents on cooperation between law enforcement agencies and security services were signed in this regard.

China’s security pledges come as Russia’s ally Hungary has worked over the past decade under Orban to reduce its dependence on the West and resist the policies of NATO and the EU. towards Ukraine.

The “security agreement” with Hungary is an undoubted victory for China, a kind of “red glove” thrown against Euro-Atlantic politicians. After all, today the European Union weighs its ties with the world’s second largest economy in terms of differences over human rights, trade imbalances, economic wars and Russian encroachment. . So Orbán and Xi show what European solidarity is worth.

On April 24 in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto. During the meeting, the issue of “strengthening bilateral ties” was discussed and it was noted that Chinese-Hungarian relations “are characterized by positive development dynamics and have lively cooperation in several fields.”

Therefore, the head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry notes that new important opportunities are opening up, because in the second half of this year the presidency of the European Union will go to Hungary. Of course, the “Hungarian-Chinese revolution in Europe” will not happen, but the promotion of PRC interests will reach a new level.

Wang Yi does not hide his hopes, saying “Hungary will help the EU take a reasonable and friendly approach to China’s development, continue a more progressive and pragmatic policy towards the People’s Republic of China , and will promote the healthy development of China-Europe relations. .”

For its part, Hungary said that it is ready to be a kind of Chinese “ram” of the European “fortress”, they say, we are against the “separation of links and chains and we do not see China as a risk, because this just means a loss of opportunities, so our view of China as a partner is the right choice.”

The Chinese have a lot to worry about, as domestic economic turmoil is intensifying, and after years of pretending to be a trade war, the EU is finally starting to show that he is ready to be tougher on Beijing. Therefore, very soon the European Union will introduce sanctions against Chinese companies for the re-export of banned European goods to the Russian Federation, before which an investigation was launched on Chinese electric vehicles.

The EU has already tried to punish China and even included several companies in the 13th package of sanctions. However, due to some processes, many of them were excluded from the final list. Europe seems to be more aggressive this time.

Xi Jinping will also visit Belgrade next month. Ties between China and Serbia have strengthened under Xi, and in February Serbian President Vucic backed Beijing’s claims to Taiwan, saying Taiwan is China.

What unites the two countries is not only the Kosovo-Taiwan issue; Serbia and China are both loyal to Moscow and do not want to impose sanctions against the Putin regime as a result of invading Ukraine.

The date of the visit is likely to fall on the 25th anniversary of the US strike on the Chinese embassy in Belgrade in 1999 as part of NATO operations. Given the date of Xi’s visit, it is likely to have an anti-NATO tone.

After Russian dictator Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Chinese officials again publicly referred to the bombing of Belgrade, thus showing solidarity with and justifying Russia’s position that it was “aggression”. NATO on its borders that would require the war.

China’s presence in the Western Balkans has expanded significantly over the past decade. There are several reasons. Due to its location, the region is an ideal gateway to EU markets and the main transit corridor for the Chinese “One Belt, One Road” mega-project. Beijing is looking for new markets to expand exports and is trying to gain control of strategic resources at the EU’s “front line”.

In addition, the Chinese are actively developing their infrastructure projects in the Balkans and buying companies, because prices are low. Therefore, the PRC is trying to increase its influence and deepen its economic and geopolitical presence in the region due to its proximity to the EU.

In the Western Balkans, as in other regions of the world, Beijing is creating an image for itself as an “innocent” world state, a reliable economic partner, looking only for opportunities to invest made in important sectors of the economy. However, this is not entirely true. China continues to strengthen its influence in the Balkans and politically.

Serbia, which has wide access to the European market, plays a central role in China’s regional strategy. This country is a very important economic partner and Beijing is considered as a tool to expand its expansion to the EU markets.

China and Serbia are also brought closer by the NATO factor. During the Alliance’s military campaign against Yugoslavia, one of the bombs hit the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, killing three Chinese journalists. Despite the official apology from the United States, the Chinese authorities are still convinced that this was done on purpose, since even then China was clearly supporting the Yugoslav authorities in the conflict have with the West.

In the end, Belgrade and Beijing do not think it is necessary to limit themselves in toxic foreign policy ties and not only did they not join the sanctions against the Russian Federation, but they also continue to actively assist the attacker.

“It should be noted that Hungary and Serbia have long established special relations with China and this vector is always presented, as the one outside Russia, with the beginning Russian aggression, when, thanks to the support of the Kremlin, the PRC froze relations with the main EU countries, and then, Of course, Serbia and Hungary have even increased communication with Beijing at the highest level. Ambassador of Ukraine to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, in a special comment to OBOZ.UA 2010-2017 Alexander Levchenko.

“Among many European countries, Xi will visit Serbia and Hungary because these countries are still friendly to China and he can count on their support, despite criticism from most of the EU because of -work with the Russian Federation.

The economic aspect also plays a big role. In Central Europe there is the “16+1” association, a form in which China cooperates with the states of Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltics and the Balkans, as well as Romania and Bulgaria. This format was very active, but after 2022, most countries, under pressure from the EU and the United States, stopped cooperation, but not Hungary and Serbia, which are highly valued in China. In addition, Belarus and Republika Srpska remain friendly. That is, they are all friends in Moscow.

Actually, Orban is counting on China, because it is a country with a powerful economic potential, so at a critical time it is possible to ask for economic support. That is why the Prime Minister of Hungary is sticking to China’s side, which the European Union does not accept well,” said Alexander Levchenko.

In his opinion, it is more likely that, during Hungary’s presidency of the EU, he can start some interesting issues for China as the country that is in the presidency. And Beijing hopes so. That is why Hungary is now a very important country for them in the context of the upcoming chairmanship.

“Therefore, Beijing supports and encourages these relations financially. Therefore, China is still in Europe through Serbia and Hungary, and from here it will have political and economic benefits,” said Alexander Levchenko.