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Chinese diplomats have had a difficult year in Europe, but this week things have taken a turn for the worse.
That’s commenter Andreas Kluth’s comment in an article published on Bloomberg on September 5.
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| Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his German counterpart Heiko Maas hold a joint press conference after their September 1 meeting in Berlin. Photo: AP |
According to Andreas Kluth, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s main goal in the region is to prevent the European Union (EU) and the United States from uniting to oppose Beijing. He hopes to make a breakthrough at a summit with EU leaders scheduled for September 14.
Initially, the meeting was scheduled to take place in Leipzig (Germany), but due to Covid-19 it should be online. Therefore, last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi traveled to five European countries to prepare for the meeting to go smoothly. Unfortunately, the conversations did, but not as sweet as expected, according to Andreas Kluth.
Kluth noted that Foreign Minister Vuong Nghi wanted to hear soft words from Europeans. Because compared to the US, Europe is even more eager to maintain trade and business cooperation with China. However, Mr. Wang was amazed by what he received.
New European shades
That discord is still pervasive compared to the Berlin incident. Speaking with German reporters, Foreign Minister Vuong Nghi warned that the President of the Senate of the Czech Republic, Milos Vystrcil, would “pay a high price” for visiting the territory of Taiwan.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas reacted immediately. Standing next to Mr. Vuong at the joint press conference, Mr. Maas said that “we are Europeans acting in close cooperation.” He asks for respect and insists on “threats that do not coincide here.” He also claimed that Europe will not become a “toy” in the Sino-American competition.
Colleagues from France, Slovakia and many other European countries were quick to express their support for Foreign Minister Maas.
This set not only a new European tone, but also a new direction. Over the years, many European countries, especially Germany, have tried for commercial reasons to ignore China’s behavior. But it seems that that era is over.
The list of complaints with China is growing, starting from the problems related to Hong Kong to the South China Sea … and ambitious trade approaches.
The September 14 summit was originally intended to formalize a better bilateral investment relationship between the EU and China. But according to Kluth, after years of negotiations, the EU is no longer interested, so instead of facilitating Chinese investment in Europe, the Union began to gradually reduce this figure.
However, there are still many restrictions on how far Europe will go compared to the United States against China.
EU choice
Noah Barkin, a China tracking expert in Berlin who currently works for the German Marshall Fund, said that while the United States wants to “separate” the economy from China, the EU wants to “diversify.”
That is why several European countries, particularly Germany, have yet to decide whether or not to ban Huawei from supplying tools for the upcoming 5G networks. It also explains why France, with the support of Germany and many other countries, is trying to keep the entire Indo-Pacific region free and prosperous.
Europeans find themselves unable to test China’s power whenever they can, as they must seek Beijing’s cooperation when necessary to solve global problems. Above all, Europeans hope that the rivalry between the United States and China does not turn into a heated war that Europe will be forced to choose.
For Europe, the objective of the bloc is to maintain a modality of autonomy in a world increasingly dominated by the two main superpowers of the world.
If Mr. Joe Biden becomes President of the United States, the EU will try to work with traditional allies to achieve its goals. And if Donald Trump wins another term in the White House, Europe will accelerate efforts to keep its distance.
Author Andreas Kluth concludes that regardless of the situation, Chinese diplomats must change their attitude during future visits.
Thanh hao
Why did the Chinese Foreign Minister visit a number of European countries during the Covid-19 period?
Wang Yi, today (August 25), started his “damage control” tour to five European countries, which is expected to focus on the problems of the 5G telecommunications network and the Huawei company.
