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The Spanish king will travel to China next month as part of his country’s efforts to bolster ties with Beijing, the first European monarch to embark on such a trip in seven years.
The royal household announced on Friday that King Felipe VI would visit China from November 11-13, a move Spanish officials said underscored the “very high level” relations between Spain and China.
The king’s visit has been orchestrated by the leftwing government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who leads the most openly pro-China administration in western Europe as he seeks to strengthen economic ties with the country despite pressure from Washington to be cool towards it.
“Asia was the region where Spain did not have a historical presence. If you want to have a global foreign policy you have to talk to everyone, especially China and India,” José Manuel Albares, Spanish foreign minister, told the Financial Times.
US President Donald Trump has had a rollercoaster relationship with Beijing since returning to the White House. Tensions eased in the latest chapter on Thursday as Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to postpone export controls on rare earths and chips as part of a one-year trade deal.
Earlier this year Scott Bessent, US Treasury secretary, warned Madrid that aligning more closely with China “would be cutting your own throat”. He did not repeat the warning on a visit to Madrid in September, when Spain hosted US-China talks that paved the way for Thursday’s trade truce.
Albares insisted that engaging with China did not mean Spain was distancing itself from the US. “We have a good dialogue with China. We have an alliance with the US,” he said.
The Spanish king, who will be on his first visit to China in 11 years on the throne, will meet Xi and travel with Albares and Spain’s economy minister. Sánchez has already met the Chinese president three times in China in less than three years.
Pedro Sánchez and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Spanish prime minister’s visit to Beijing in 2023 © via REUTERS
The EU in recent years has taken more aggressive steps against China’s subsidised exports and insisted on more technology transfers. But some governments have struggled to find the right balance, with German foreign minister Johann Wadephul recently forced to cancel a trip to China due to mounting tensions.
The Spanish monarch will be accompanied by a large group of corporate leaders from sectors including autos, food, energy and pharmaceuticals, according to one business official. His trip coincides with the 20th anniversary of a “comprehensive strategic partnership” agreed by Madrid and Beijing.
The last European royal to make a state visit to China was the king of Norway in 2018.
Spain is eager to attract investments from high-end Chinese manufacturers, notably in the electric vehicle sector, where it sees China’s technology as key to guaranteeing the future of Spanish industry.
Madrid also wants to export more to China. In the first eight months of 2025, Spain had a €26.9bn trade deficit with China that was equal to 77 per cent of its total deficit of €35.1bn.
Chinese-built factories, such as a €4bn battery plant planned by CATL near Zaragoza, have the potential to reduce imports from China while also creating jobs. But union officials and China experts have warned that Chinese companies will be reluctant to share their technological secrets.
Spain’s engagement with China has been marked by a lack of domestic dissent. By contrast, China policy in the UK, France and Germany has sparked fierce debates over how to balance economic interests with concerns about security and over-reliance on Beijing.
Madrid resisted US pressure after the heads of intelligence committees in the US Congress criticised the Spanish government for signing a €12mn contract to use Huawei hardware to store wiretaps, warning it was “playing with fire” and putting national security at risk.
Spain is also in Trump’s cross hairs for rejecting his demand to spend 5 per cent of its GDP on defence — which all other Nato allies have agreed to. This month Trump mused about ejecting Spain from Nato or punishing it with tariffs.
Spanish officials say they have no choice but to build ties with China because the “unipolar” era of US hegemony is over and Spain needs to be on good terms with rising powers such as India, Brazil and the Gulf states.
Some experts, however, warn that Spain risks locking itself into a relationship of dependency.
Juan Luis Manfredi, senior lecturer in foreign policy at the University of Castilla-La Mancha, said: “China is a neocolonial power trying to increase its bargaining power on European issues through Spain, and it can do that because we need money, we need finance.”
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“Spain is not well-placed to stand toe-to-toe with China because Spain lacks statecraft. It lacks the capacity to co-ordinate military power, foreign policy and aid,” Manfredi added.
Chinese officials regularly scold their European counterparts for not being more independent from the US in their foreign policy. During a visit to Europe last year, Xi lavished praise on China-friendly governments in Serbia and Hungary.
Charles Powell, director of the Elcano Royal Institute, a think-tank, defended Spain’s stance on China, noting that the EU was divided on how to deal with the Asian powerhouse. “So in reality everyone is breaking ranks. Spain . . . is neither among the most conciliatory nor the most confrontational members.”
Additional reporting by Amy Borrett in London and Richard Milne in Oslo
