Xi ‘declines’ invitation to EU anniversary meet

BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping has declined an invitation to visit Brussels for a summit to mark the 5Oth anniversary of EU-China diplomatic ties, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

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Beijing told EU officials that Premier Li Giang would meet the presidents of the European Council and Commission instead of Xi, the FT said, citing two people familiar with the matter whom it did not identify.

The Chinese premier usually attends the summit when it is held in Brussels, while the president hosts it in Beijing, but the EU wants Xi to attend to commemorate half a century of relations between Beijing and the bloc, the newspaper said.