Chinese president Xi Jinping came to France and is taking home 300 Airbus jetliners, a large consignment of frozen chickens and a wind farm. A great triumph for France, declared Emmanuel Macron. And for Macron? Never mind that many of the planes will be built in China. Or that Airbus is no longer a French company but an international one, although headquartered in Toulouse. Or that the hens are unlikely to be free range. It’s hard to argue with a cheque for £30 billion. Or to stop a politician taking credit for a deal that’s been in the works for years.
To cement his triumph, Macron hosts Xi today at an impromptu summit at the Elysée palace with Angela Merkel and Jean-Claude Juncker. The theme is the challenge of multilateralism – code for opposition to Donald Trump’s unilateral approach. It suits Xi, whose entire visit has been a calculated kick in the teeth to Trump.
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