Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, March 21, 2023.
Xinhua News Agency | Xinhua News Agency | Getty’s paintings
BRUSSELS – China’s relationship with Russia is causing unrest and division in the European Union, with some in the bloc arguing it is time to rethink its relationship with Beijing.
Chinese President Xi Jinping traveled to Russia earlier this week, where the two leaders shared mutual concerns, warm words, and called one another a “dear friend.” Speaking alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese leader Xi predicted voters would re-elect his Russian counterpart next yr and described his leadership as “strong”.
Their talks are closely followed by US and EU officials, especially regarding the potential military support Beijing could provide to Moscow, which could materially help it make progress in the war in Ukraine.
More broadly, nonetheless, stronger ties between Moscow and Beijing create problems for the European Union, which has thus far sought to strengthen its own economic ties with China.
There may be a college of thought that the EU must severely limit its relations with Beijing – something the US would welcome. But some EU leaders would like to watch out with their words and actions as a substitute, in case they antagonize Beijing.
Xi’s visit to Russia “opens our eyes a bit in Europe,” Latvian Prime Minister Arturs Krišjānis Kariņš told CNBC on Thursday.
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“If perhaps many, many individuals hoped that China could in some way be or take over the role [peace] middleman, China doesn’t do this in any respect. China is actually now openly siding with Russia. And this is definitely a really big challenge and a giant difficulty for all of us,” he said.
Last month, China unveiled a 12-point peace plan between Russia and Ukraine. The proposal doesn’t specify whether Russia needs to go away Ukraine for the deal to be finalized. Kiev has made it clear that it’s going to not conform to any peace deal that doesn’t involve regaining full control over its territory, including Crimea, which was annexed by the Kremlin in 2014.
“We looked very closely [the] communiqué from Xi Jinping’s meeting with Vladimir Putin,” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told CNBC. “We very much hope that the phone call between Xi Jinping and Volodymyr Zelensky will happen as soon as possible.”
There was speculation that the Chinese leader will now hold his first talk with the Ukrainian president since the invasion began in February 2022 after leaving Moscow.
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Nonetheless, in Western countries there are doubts as as to whether China may be an efficient mediator between Russia and Ukraine. Asked if he trusted Beijing to achieve this, Rutte said: “It’s hard to evaluate.”
While Ukraine had previously called on Hungary and Germany to get too near Russia, it kept a more friendly tone towards Beijing.
“I don’t need to attack China simply to attack China,” Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel told CNBC in Brussels on Thursday. He said that China is a competitor to the EU, but additionally a partner. Indeed, in 2022 China was the third largest destination for goods from the EU.
“The identical goes for TikTok,” Bettel said. “In my country, TikTok remains to be not banned. I do not ban TikTok since it’s Chinese, but when I actually have evidence that something exists, I’ll ban it – but I’m not in favor of attacking or banning without evidence. “
European institutions, Belgium and Denmark, amongst others, have banned the use of the Chinese app on government business phones out of concern for national security.
Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, in January, France’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, said the French desired to work with China.
“China cannot disappear, China must enter. That is the difference in views we’ve between the United States and Europe,” he said. “We don’t need to oppose China, we wish to work with China.”
Overall, the EU is stuck between a rock and a tough place. Its trade links with China are vital, especially when EU economic growth is exposed to the ongoing war in Ukraine. But at the same time, it’s witnessing a better bond between Beijing and Moscow, which could also be in direct conflict with the EU’s goal of peace in Ukraine.
Furthermore, since the invasion, the EU has grow to be much more depending on the US for security, while Washington’s rhetoric is increasingly critical of China.