President Sarkozy will avoid public criticism on human rights when he tries to persuade China to make France its top European partner on a state visit to Beijing today.

“Super Sarko”, who arrived in China yesterday on his first Asian trip since his election, is deploying his usual energy to shake up the somewhat sleepy relationship that President Chirac enjoyed with Beijing.

The last French president, an expert on oriental culture and a regular visitor to China, was appreciated by the leadership for his resistance to US power in Asia, but he failed to win the commercial favour for France that is enjoyed by Germany and Britain.

The trip to Beijing has made tabloid news in France because of Mr Sarkozy’s hotel bed and an angry film star. The President inaugurated a 10ft-wide (3m) superbed last night in a €6,800anight (£4,869) state suite at the Beijing Sofitel hotel.

Alain Delon, the veteran film icon, revealed on Saturday his “hatred and rage” against “the clowns” among Mr Sarkozy’s staff who had failed to invite him on the trip to China. The Elysée Palace said yesterday that there had been a muddle over the invitation for Mr Delon, who is one of the most successful “exports” from France to China. France hopes that the Sarkozy trip will bring to conclusion about €15 billion of orders from French companies and 150 jets from the French-based European Airbus company. The French contracts include two new generation, pressurised water nuclear reactors from Areva, the nuclear group, and Alstom, an engineering company.

Mr Sarkozy, who has taken seven ministers and 40 businessmen with him, is setting out what he calls his policy of “new realism”. Already tested on a trip to Moscow last month, it amounts to diluting his election campaign promise to apply a frankness on human rights in foreign policy. In Beijing he is to address rights in private with President Hu Jintao, as well as China’s poor record on the environment, while his public emphasis will be on building “new harmony” between Paris and Beijing. One sign of sensitivity to China was the decision by Mr Sarkozy not to take with him Rama Yade, 31, the Senegalese-born Human Rights Minister who has been prominent on several of his trips.

France, which has one of the biggest trade deficits with China, wants to become “the locomotive of the European train” in relations with China, an aide to Mr Sarkozy said. Another senior official said: “We would like to establish strong relations with China at a moment when relations between Beijing and certain Western countries have become more tense.” This was an allusion to strains between Berlin and Beijing after Chancellor Angela Mer-kel met the Dalai Lama in September.

Mr Sarkozy, who visited the ancient Terracotta army in Xian, western China, yesterday, is trying to persuade Beijing to join the Franco-American push for new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme. He will also push his longstanding complaint over what he sees as the Chinese policy of devaluing its currency. Mr Sarkozy blames the low yuan for contributing to France’s €16 billion trade deficit with China last year.

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