Xi in Europe; Bytedance and TikTok sue the US; PRC-Philippines "gentleman's agreement" mess; Hauwei; AI

Summary of today’s Essential Eight:

1. Xi has left France - How did Xi’s meetings with Macron and von der Leyen go? Was there any progress on reducing Xi’s support for Putin, or on addressing some of the economic concerns the EU has, like overcapacity? French congnac makers are happy with the temporary tariff reprieve, but what else was accomplished? I am not being snarky, it is a serious question that I hope some of you more knowledgable readers can enlighten us about. Thanks in advance.

2. Xi in Serbia and Hungary - Xi went from France to Serbia and now has arrived in Hungary. In Serbia he did not visit the memorial to the May 7th 1999 Nato bombing of the PRC embassy, as he did in 2016. He mentioned the tragedy in a article published in his name in a Serbian newspaper, writing “twenty-five years ago today, Nato flagrantly bombed the Chinese embassy in Yugoslavia, killing three Chinese journalists—Ms. Shao Yunhuan, Mr. Xu Xinghu and his wife Zhu Ying. This we should never forget/” But not g…