Macron Shares Concerns Over Human Rights With Chinese Minister

(Bloomberg) -- French President Emmanuel Macron shared his concerns over human rights with Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi, and insisted on the need for China to respect its international commitments.

During a meeting Friday, they discussed the situation in Hong Kong and the treatment of the Uighurs in Xinjiang, Macron’s office said in a statement. They also talked about partnerships in the nuclear and agrifood industries, health, the debt of African countries and climate change.

China is looking to turn on the charm in Europe to push back against a U.S. campaign for allies to shun cooperation with Beijing. The Chinese minister kicked off a week-long Europe tour Tuesday, with stops in Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, France and Germany. The trip comes after visits by U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, who warned that China poses a greater threat than Russia.

In Norway, Wang cautioned against giving a Nobel Peace Prize to Hong Kong protesters -- underscoring the limitations of Beijing’s diplomatic charm offensive.

For China, the European trip is part of a broader push to stabilize key relationships around the world, particularly as the U.S. seeks to keep Huawei Technologies Co. out of 5G networks.

On Friday, Macron insisted that France’s policy to promote European technologies did not target Huawei.

“No company, wherever it comes from, is targeted” by the French rules, the president told a group of reporters. France’s new security rules are effectively phasing out the Chinese supplier. Still, the topic of 5G did not come up with Wang Yi, Macron said.

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