BRUSSELS — Partners, competitors, or rivals?
EU leaders
are debating whether to rethink their stance on China as President Xi Jinping
tightens his grip over an ever more assertive Beijing.
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A two-day summit
in Brussels from Thursday will be dominated by the fallout of the war in
Ukraine and Europe’s soaring energy prices, but ties with the world’s
second-largest economy will also loom.
“In the light of
the current geo-political context, we need to hold a strategic discussion on
China,” European Council chief
Charles Michel wrote in his invitation.
Leaders must
establish “how we wish to frame this critical relationship in the future,” he
added.
Torn between the
desire to access China’s vast markets and condemnation of its rights abuses and
aggressive regional policies, the 27-nation bloc has traditionally struggled to
fashion a cohesive approach towards Beijing.
Keen to cover
all bases, the EU has dubbed Beijing a “cooperation partner”, “economic
competitor”, and “systemic rival” all at the same time.
Now some are
arguing that approach needs to stiffen as Xi pushes a more confrontational line
with the West as he stands on the cusp of securing a third five-year term at
the Communist Party Congress.
“The message
that China is sending out today is a message of competition,” EU Foreign Policy
chief Josep Borrell said after the bloc’s foreign ministers discussed the issue
on Monday.
Russia, Taiwan
EU-China relations have been tense since a major investment pact was
put on ice last year after Beijing angrily hit back at sanctions over its
treatment of the Uighur minority in Xinjiang.
The EU’s
diplomatic service this month circulated a strategy paper, seen by AFP, that
looked to balance the need to “speak, work, trade, and negotiate” against
pushing back on Beijing.
“Management of
the EU-China relationship will be a key determinant of the EU’s future economic
and geostrategic security,” it said.
Many are worried
by
China’s warm ties with Moscow and angered at its failure to come out against
the war in Ukraine.
Fears are also
high over Beijing’s belligerent vows to “reunify” Taiwan and the EU foreign
service has urged member states to warn China of “possible consequences” if it
seeks to take control through force.
‘Dependency’ trap
Chastened by the chaos caused by its reliance on
Russia for energy, the
EU is keen to ensure it doesn’t fall into the same trap by becoming dependent
on China for critical raw materials and technologies.
“Now we are
talking about our dependency, vulnerability from Russian gas. We have to avoid
creating new ones,” Borrell said.
But that will be
easier said than done.
“China has just
got its hands on the cobalt reserves of the Democratic Republic of Congo and
holds 85 percent of the rare earths in the world,” said Elvire Fabry, an
analyst for the Jacques Delors Institute.
Some within
Europe have pushed for the bloc to side closer with the US as successive
administrations there take a far tougher line on confronting Beijing’s growing
might.
But others
insist that the EU needs to tread its own path and not be too reliant on
Washington.
“We need to get
out of these dependencies, not substitute them with other dependencies,” said
another European diplomat.
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