Xi hosts King Felipe as China courts Spain—its new best friend in Europe

In a significant diplomatic shift, Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed King Felipe VI of Spain to Beijing on Wednesday, marking the first state visit by a Spanish monarch to China in 18 years.

The meeting comes as Spain intensifies its push to deepen ties with China, positioning itself as perhaps Beijing’s closest friend in Europe—at a moment when other Western governments are moving cautiously.

Closer ties, broader ambitions

President Xi told King Felipe that China “stands ready to work hand in hand with Spain to build a comprehensive strategic partnership,” describing such ties as “more strategically steady, more dynamic and more influential globally.”

For its part, Spain is actively courting Chinese investment. Madrid’s previous moves include sending Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez twice in recent years to promote Spain as an investment destination, particularly in electric vehicles, green technology and mining.

One telling statistic: Spain imported around 45 billion euros worth of goods from China in 2024, but exported only about 7.5 billion euros’ worth — illustrating its trade imbalance and the appeal of Chinese investment to help redress it.

Strategic calculus and soft-power play

The choice of King Felipe as the visiting head of state is significant—a constitutional monarch without direct government responsibilities, offering Spain a soft-diplomacy route to engage Beijing. “A relationship of trust has been forged,” the King said in Beijing.

Analysts view Spain’s approach as a hedge: while its relations with the U.S. face strains (including pressure over NATO spending), China offers fresh opportunities in greenfield investment and technology-driven growth.

China, meanwhile, is seeking to move past trade tensions within the European Union — including disputes over electric-vehicle subsidies — and sees Spain as a partner in helping project global influence.

But not without risks

Despite the momentum, there are complications. Spain’s pork exporters have benefitted from Chinese demand, but commodity-exports alone cannot erase the structural trade imbalance.

There are also concerns about technology and national security. One example: a project involving Huawei equipment for Spain’s fibre-optic networks was cancelled this year amid security worries.

And from the US perspective, Spain’s deepening engagement with China is viewed warily. The US has even described Spain’s tilt toward Beijing as “cutting your own throat,” according to one Brussels-based analyst.

As the document-signing ceremony in Beijing concluded (details of which were not publicly disclosed), the broader significance is clear: Spain is doubling down on China, and China is embracing Spain as perhaps its most active European partner.

For Madrid, the challenge will be balancing the economic benefits of Chinese engagement with its commitments to the EU and trans-Atlantic alliances. For Beijing, the calculation is whether this relationship can become a model foothold in Europe—beyond trade and investment, and into influence.