Ahead of a planned trip to Beijing, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed the European Union's need to engage with China while pointing out many points of friction.
"Europe is fully committed to result-oriented engagement with China," von der Leyen said at the European Parliament in the French city of Strasbourg.
Cutting ties with Beijing "would be inefficient and ineffective," she said but criticized unfair practices in trade with China.
"The system is explicitly rigged," von der Leyen said, condemning the flood of cheap, subsidized products from China and called for fair market access for European companies.
The commission president welcomed the fact that a debate on overproduction and distorted markets had begun in China, before stressing her concerns about China's support for Russia.
"We also know that China's unyielding support for Russia is creating heightened instability and insecurity for Europe," she said.
"We can say that China is de facto enabling Russia's war economy, and we cannot accept this."
Under current plans, senior representatives of the EU and China are to hold a summit in Beijing later this month where von der Leyen, together with European Council President António Costa, is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.