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Chinese leader Xi visits the French Pyrenees in a personal gesture by Macron

During his visit to the Pyrenees in France, Chinese President Xi Jinping enjoyed watching folklore dances and traditional music before lunch at a mountain restaurant on Tuesday. France’s president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan enjoy a drink in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

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Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, left, pose in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping enjoys a drink in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and his wife Peng Liyuan watch folklore dancers, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees moutains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

China’s President Xi Jinping’s wife Peng Liyuan, right, and French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife Brigitte Macron pose in front of the clock as they visit the Orsay Museum, Monday, May 6, 2024 in Paris. China’s President Xi Jinping is in France for a two-day state visit that is expected to focus both on trade disputes and diplomatic efforts to convince Beijing to use its influence to move Russia toward ending the war in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, sings in a restaurant after a lunch in a restaurant with Chinese President Xi Jinping, second left, his wife Peng Liyuan, and Brigitte Macron, right, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, second left, and his wife Peng Liyuan, third left, French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and his wife Brigitte Macron listen to singers in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, watches French President Emmanuel Macron in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, drinks coffee in a restaurant with Chinese President Xi Jinping, his wife Peng Liyuan, and Brigitte Macron Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping drinks coffee in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, with French President Emmanuel Macron enjoy a moment in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, second right, and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, French President Emmanuel Macron, holding a Tour de Francecycling race jersey and his wife Brigitte Macron, left, discuss in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, and his wife Peng Liyuan, second left, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, left, pose in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and his wife Peng Liyuan watch folklore dancers, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, Chinese President Xi Jinping, center left, and his wife Peng Liyuan, fourth left, pose with folklore dancers, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, enjoy a drink with French President Emmanuel Macron in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, second right, his wife Peng Liyuan and French rPresident Emmanuel Macron share a moment in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping enjoy a drink in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan, right, enjoy a drink with French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron, left, in a restaurant, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. French president is hosting China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees for private meetings, after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and French President Emmanuel Macron review the troops before Xi Jinping’s departure, Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Tarbes airport, southwestern France. French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard, Pool)

TOURMALET PASS, France (AP) — France’s president hosted China’s leader at a remote mountain pass in the Pyrenees on Tuesday for private meetings after a high-stakes state visit in Paris dominated by trade disputes and Russia’s war in Ukraine .

French President Emmanuel Macron made a point of inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Tourmalet Pass near the Spanish border, where Macron spent time as a child visiting his grandmother. It is meant to be a reciprocal gesture after Xi took Macron last year to the residence of the governor of Guangdong province, where the Chinese president’s father once lived.

Snow coated nearby slopes after new snowfall overnight, and security was tightened around the area. The winding roads up to the pass were blocked by authorities Tuesday for dozens of kilometers.

Foggy weather, falling snow and brisk winds obscured the view of the dramatic Tourmalet Pass. Macron and Xi — together with their wives, Brigitte Macron and Peng Liyuan — visited a mountain restaurant. Before lunch, protected from the elements by umbrellas, they watched a traditional folk dance performance on the terrace. The leaders could be seen eating ham and blueberry pie, among other local specialties.

Macron presented Xi with a yellow Tour de France jersey — with the Tourmalet Pass one of the most famous climbs of the race — a woolen blanket made in the Pyrenees and a bottle of Armagnac, French broadcaster BFMTV said.

The mountain meetings come after a grandiose state visit by Xi on Monday that included a ceremonial welcome at the monument housing Napoleon’s tomb and a state dinner at the Elysee Palace with celebrities and magnates.

Xi left France from the Pyrenees on Tuesday evening by plane, in a departure ceremony that included military fanfare.

The Elysee said Tuesday it welcomed the dialogue between Macron and Xi, which was “friendly but also very frank,” according to BFMTV. The broadcaster also noted that Macron had brought up the issue of human rights with the Chinese president, including “a few individual cases”.

Xi is on a trip to Europe aimed at reinvigorating relations at a time of global tensions. He heads next to Serbia and Hungary .

The last day of his visit to France came as authorities were searching the European Parliament office of a prominent German far-right lawmaker in Brussels on Tuesday, Germany’s top prosecutor’s office said.

Maximilian Krah , the Alternative for Germany party’s top candidate in the upcoming European Parliament election, has been under scrutiny after an assistant of his was arrested last month on suspicion of spying for China.

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U.K. Police Charge 3 Men With Aiding Hong Kong Intelligence Service

The three appeared in court on Monday after being arrested under Britain’s National Security Act. Eight other people detained in the case have been released.

By Stephen Castle

Reporting from London

Three men have been charged with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service, the London Metropolitan Police said on Monday, following an investigation in which arrests and searches were carried out across England.

The three people charged under Britain’s National Security Act were identified as Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, of Staines-upon-Thames; Matthew Trickett, 37, of Maidenhead, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, of Hackney, East London.

“The foreign intelligence service to which the above charges relate is that of Hong Kong,” the police said in a statement .

The three men appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday. As court proceedings are now active, English reporting restrictions apply, limiting what can be reported about the case.

Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police’s counterterrorism command, said the investigation was continuing. “While these offenses are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them,” he said.

Eleven people in total were detained during the investigation. Eight men and a woman were arrested on May 1 in Yorkshire, in northern England, by counterterrorism police officers. The following day, a man was arrested in London and another in Yorkshire. Among the allegations is that entry was forced into a residential address in Britain on May 1.

The eight people who were not charged have been released from custody. The three who face charges did not enter pleas but were granted bail ahead of their next scheduled court appearance on May 24.

In Britain, China, which includes Hong Kong, has been blamed for several recent cases of spying. “All those accusations are groundless and slanderous,” the Chinese Embassy in London said in a statement .

As for the latest allegations, the statement, referring to the Hong Kong Special Administration Region by its initials, said, “The Chinese side firmly rejects and strongly condemns the U.K.’s fabrication of the so-called case and its unwarranted accusation against the HKSAR government and has made serious representations to the U.K. side on the matter.”

The men’s court appearance coincided with a warning from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that the country was facing some of the most dangerous years it has ever known.

In a speech in London on Monday morning, Mr. Sunak described China, Russia, North Korea and Iran as a newly assertive “axis of authoritarian states.”

“More will change in the next five years than in the last 30. I’m convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known,” Mr. Sunak said, adding: “Our country stands at a crossroads.”

With a general election expected in the second half of the year, Mr. Sunak’s speech was highly political in tone, seeking to draw dividing lines between his Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, which is well ahead in opinion polls. Britain, Mr. Sunak said, would be less safe if Labour’s leader, Keir Starmer, became prime minister.

“Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society — to the hardest questions of war and peace — almost every aspect of our lives is going to change,” he said.

In a statement, Pat McFadden, Labour’s campaign coordinator, responded that “the only way to stop the chaos, turn the page and start to renew is with a change of government.”

Stephen Castle is a London correspondent of The Times, writing widely about Britain, its politics and the country’s relationship with Europe. More about Stephen Castle

Russia’s Putin to visit China in first foreign trip since re-election

The Russian leader’s May 16-17 visit aims to underscore the deepening ‘no limits’ partnership with China’s Xi Jinping.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit China this week, both countries announced, using the first foreign trip of his new six-year term to underscore the deepening partnership with China’s Xi Jinping.

China and Russia declared a “no limits” partnership in February 2022 when Putin visited Beijing just days before he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine.

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“At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to China on May 16-17 as his first foreign trip after taking office,” the Kremlin said on Tuesday.

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement that the two will discuss “bilateral ties, cooperation in various fields, and international and regional issues of common interest”.

It will be Putin’s second visit in just over six months to China, an economic lifeline for Russia after Western nations imposed sanctions over its military offensive in Ukraine.

China has rebuffed Western criticism of its ties with Russia, but their economic partnership and military cooperation have come under increasing scrutiny in the West.

The United States’s latest punitive measures, announced this month, targeted more than 280 entities in their latest effort to paralyse Russia’s military and industrial capabilities, including 20 firms based in China and Hong Kong.

US-China rivalry

The US casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its largest nation-state threat while US President Joe Biden argues that this century will be defined by an existential contest between democracies and autocracies.

Putin and Xi share a broad worldview, which sees the West as decadent and in decline just as China challenges US supremacy in everything from quantum computing and synthetic biology to espionage and hard military power.

During the visit, Putin will meet Chinese Premier Li Qiang to discuss economic cooperation. Putin will also visit the northeastern city of Harbin, which has strong ties to Russia, for a trade and investment exposition.

Putin pivoted to China after the US and its allies tried to isolate Russia as punishment for the war in Ukraine.

China-Russian trade hit a record of $240.1bn in 2023, up 26.3 percent from a year earlier, Chinese customs data shows.

Top crude oil supplier

Russia has become China’s top crude supplier, with its oil shipments to China jumping more than 24 percent in 2023 despite Western sanctions.

The Kremlin said the two leaders would “identify key areas for further development of Russian-Chinese practical cooperation” and would sign a joint statement after the meeting.

Putin, 71, and Xi, 70, will take part in an event celebrating 75 years since the Soviet Union recognised the People’s Republic of China which was declared by Mao Zedong in 1949.