Commenting upon the EU’s China policy, which is on the agenda of today’s Foreign Affairs Council (FAC), Reinhard Bütikofer, Foreign Policy Coordinator of the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament, says:
“It is about time that Foreign Ministers return to discussing China. A plentitude of diplomatic contacts has helped creating valuable insights into the development of the EU-China relationship.
De-risking must be the guiding principle on our way forward vis-à-vis China. President von der Leyen has laid out this principle with high plausibility and has received almost universal support for that. De-risking must be implemented in all the dimensions of our economic relations with China, be it on the level of individual economic actors, on the level of certain national economies or on the level of the EU’s common trade policy.
De-risking should, however, not be confined to the economic realm alone. We also need de-risking in other sectors. Europe must push back together against China’s aggressive stance on Taiwan which is increasing tensions and instability in the Taiwan Strait and beyond. Europe must hold China to account for its support of President Putin’s imperialist policies. Europe must together, and in collaboration with G77 countries, put pressure on China to deliver on its climate responsibilities.
The completely unacceptable remarks of Lu Shaye, China’s ambassador to France, putting in question the sovereignty of the Baltic states and other post-Soviet countries, have underscored the dangerous revisionist character of China’s foreign policy. The EU must not shrink from taking a clear united and strong stance. Beijing should be called to upon to must disavow the ambassador’s remarks and the ambassador should be sent home.”
