At the start of 2020, German Chancellor Angela Merkel thought this week she would be welcoming Chinese President Xi Jinping and the heads of other European governments for a major summit in Leipzig, her diplomatic swansong as she prepares to step down after 15 years in power and a moment for both sides to finally agree on terms on a much-vaunted investment pact. Instead, after a pandemic and worsening Europe-China relations, the only thing both sides could muster was a low-key videoconference between Merkel, Xi and two European Union (EU) leaders at which almost nothing seemed to be agreed on and the most important ... (full story)