EU-China summit sullied by storm clouds

APRIL Fool's Day, the first day of that month, is an annual custom centred around practical jokes and hoaxes, but rarely a moment for important diplomacy. However, that will change on Friday with the EU-China summit, which comes at a crucial point in bilateral relations.

While the diplomatic atmosphere may be warm, bilateral relations have been jolted since the coronavirus crisis began with a significant spike in tensions that has not been made smoother by China's qualified support for Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

The list of issues over which Beijing and Brussels have been at odds in the last couple of years has grown, including alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang, the imposition of Hong Kong's national security law, and a long-negotiated Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) whose ratification was put on ice last year.