Newly Assertive EU Faces Resistant China at Summit

Newly Assertive EU Faces Resistant China at Summit
China's Premier Li Keqiang (2nd R) looks over to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (C) as they attend the China-EU Business Roundtable at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on July 16, 2018. Ng Han Guan /AFP/Getty Images
|Updated:

BRUSSELS—Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and European Union institution leaders met in Brussels on April 9 for an annual EU-China summit that the EU has seized on to pressure Beijing over trade and investment.

After years of offering free access to its markets, the EU is losing patience with the slow pace of Beijing’s own market liberalization. It is also growing concerned over state-led Chinese companies’ dominance of some EU markets and acquisitions of strategic industries.