{"id":594,"date":"2021-04-28T15:37:49","date_gmt":"2021-04-28T12:37:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/?p=594"},"modified":"2021-04-28T16:11:04","modified_gmt":"2021-04-28T13:11:04","slug":"eu-slams-chinas-authoritarian-shift-and-broken-economic-promises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/eu-slams-chinas-authoritarian-shift-and-broken-economic-promises\/","title":{"rendered":"EU SLAMS CHINA\u2019S \u2018AUTHORITARIAN SHIFT\u2019 AND BROKEN ECONOMIC PROMISES"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Politco<\/a>. 25 April 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below is an article published by Politco<\/a>. Photo:Nelson Ching\/Bloomberg via Getty Images.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union\u2019s stance on China is hardening, and that should go down well in Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only four months after Beijing and Brussels concluded the principles of a landmark investment agreement, ahigh-level internal report seen by POLITICO shows the EU is now increasingly pessimistic about keeping business interests separate from political concerns over what it calls President Xi Jinping\u2019s \u201cauthoritarian shift.\u201d This tougher language reflects a new approach in the EU\u2019s official communications on China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The EU\u2019s \u201cprogress report\u201d on China also slams Beijing for \u201clittle progress\u201d on economic promises made by the Communist leadership, particularly in regard to opening up digital and agricultural markets, addressing steel overcapacity and reining in industrial subsidies. It calls for \u201cfurther, robust\u201d measures to deal with the new challenges posed by China, whose economy is recovering from the coronavirus pandemic at a blistering pace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe reality is that the EU and China have fundamental divergences, be it about their economic systems and managing globalization, democracy and human rights, or on how to deal with third countries. These differences are set to remain for the foreseeable future and must not be brushed under the carpet,\u201d European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Josep Borrell, the bloc\u2019s foreign policy chief, said in a letter outlining the report to the European Council comprising leaders of the 27 EU countries, on April 21.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A spokesperson for Borrell on Sunday confirmed that a report on China had been sent to the Council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo be fully effective, the EU will also need to work closely with other partners. The new US administration confirmed its intention to re-engage with multilateral institutions and work closely with allies and partners, also as regards China \u2026 We must accept that open handand work together, whilst asserting our own stance, and our own interests, on the world stage,\u201d the two said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The EU\u2019s report seeks to assess the changing dynamics since the EU-China strategic outlook was published in 2019. The bloc\u2019s acknowledgement that the environment is now \u201cmore challenging\u201d reflects an unexpectedly rapid souring of diplomatic relations since December. Since then, there has been been heightened international concern about China\u2019s military brinkmanship over Taiwan, its crackdown against Muslim Uyghurs in the region of Xinjiang, and against democracy activists in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Commission\u2019s decision to conclude the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment with China in December was contentious, and the incoming administration of U.S. President Joe Biden signaled that it would like Brussels to consult with Washington before pressing ahead. Brussels brushed off those concerns and plowed on with a deal that was supposed to give a big fillip to European carmakers with factories in China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still trying to stay in Xi\u2019s good books, France and Germany both rebuffed Biden\u2019s idea that Europe should team up with Washington to create a united democratic front against China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Europe\u2019s attempt to keep business interests and human rights worries on separate tracks imploded in March, however. When the EU imposed seeming low-key sanctions against Chinese officials over a crackdown against Uyghur Muslims in the region of Xinjiang, Beijing escalated the conflict with retaliatory sanctions on diplomats, members of the European Parliament and academics working at European think-tanks. Many MEPs have made clear that they will never ratify the EU-China investment deal while their colleagues are sanctioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The EU report circulated in the past week noted that Beijing had taken a \u201cmore assertive line\u201d over the past two years. \u201cIt has continued its authoritarian shift with further closure of the domestic political space, increased social controls and repression in Xinjiang and Tibet. China has also cracked down on fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong [which] \u2026 can only have a negative impact on EU-China relations,\u201d it said. \u201cThe EU has clear interests at stake when it comes to peace and stability in the South China Sea. The recent rise in tensions across the Taiwan Strait should be closely followed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bridging the Atlantic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This language is now falling more closely in step with that in Washington and comes as Biden plans to visit Brussels for an EU-U.S. summit in June, with China expected to be front and center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an attempt to hold onto the hope of some common ground, the EU still insisted it \u201cremains fully relevant\u201d to not just treat China as a strategic competitor and systemic rival, but also a \u201cnegotiating partner for cooperation,\u201d including on climate change or on \u201cthe democratic transition \u2026 in Myanmar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Europe is tilting towards a more confrontational stance than in previous reports, saying: \u201cThe multi-faceted approach \u2026 should remain as the preferred way for the EU to deal with China. At the same time, further, robust efforts are needed on the implementation of existing actions and to address a number of new challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Questioned on the report in March, Borrell said China\u2019s sanctions on EU officials had created \u201ca new atmosphere\u201d and \u201ca new situation.\u201d \u201cI am sure that when we present this report to the European Union Council, the leaders will discuss about it and will take into consideration the last events.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manfred Weber, who leads the European Parliament\u2019s biggest faction, the European People\u2019s Party, said: \u201cWhen it comes to China, it is urgent and crucial that Europe actively works to unite our position with the U.S., to defend our common interests and firmly reject the aggression coming from Beijing against our allies around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trade and technology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The EU has already set out a joint agenda with the Biden administration to address problems with China, especially in the areas of trade and technology. These two topics featured prominently in the internal report, which shed light on Beijing\u2019s delaying tactics when it comes to delivering reform promises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the topic of Beijing unfairly pouring state cash into industry through subsidies, the EU said China \u201chas so far not engaged on substance, claiming that the mandate of the [EU-China working group on WTO reform] was limited to exchange of information but not negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An associated problem is overcapacity. \u201cThe pandemic-related crisis has further exacerbated the problem, as Chinese steel production continued to increase,\u201d the report stated. \u201cThe EU is also concerned about other sectors that may already now or in the future suffer from overcapacity as a result of subsidization in China, for instance aluminium or high-tech sectors such as certain types of semi-conductors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After many years of inaction, Brussels is now threatening to move fast to put barriers up to Chinese companies from the EU\u2019s public procurement market \u2014 large infrastructure tenders \u2014 noting in the report that there has been \u201cnew political momentum and member states\u2019 growing awareness\u201d of the difficulties faced by EU businesses to access China\u2019s procurement markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe work has intensified, with the objective to reach a common position in the Council before the end of the Portuguese Presidency in the first half of 2021,\u201d it said. \u201cFollowing that, trilateral discussions with the European Parliament and the Council would start, with a view to adopting the proposal by the co-legislators possibly by the end of 2021.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The EU document also took a dig at Beijing\u2019s market access promises \u2014 pointing to a serious setback to what the European Commission said was a historic achievement in the EU-China investment agreement. \u201cDespite the reassurances that were provided by the Chinese leadership, including as regards EU market access concerns in the agri-food and digital sectors, there has been little progress, with the exception of some results achieved in the financial services area,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission\u2019s frustration is not limited to Beijing but is also directed at the lack of progress at home, as 10 member states still have not created investment screening mechanisms, amid concerns that Chinese-backed companies could take advantage of the post-pandemic economic downturn and snap up critical sectors in Europe, like they did, for example, to Greece\u2019s Piraeus port during the financial crisis a decade ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe EU competes with China for technological edge and does not share the same principles and values in terms of digital governance. Looking ahead, the EU will need to continue strengthening the security of its critical infrastructure and technological base,\u201d the report said. \u201cThe Commission stands ready to work with member states to identify and address security risks and human rights concerns associated with trade in strategic and critical technologies, in particular with respect to cyber-surveillance technologies and other emerging technologies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Commission and the Chinese mission to the EU did not immediately reply Sunday to requests for comment on the report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Politco. 25 April 2021 Below is an article published by Politco. Photo:Nelson Ching\/Bloomberg via Getty Images. The European Union\u2019s stance on China is hardening, and that should go down well in Washington. Only four months after Beijing and Brussels concluded<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":595,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44,32,40,35,37],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=594"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":601,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594\/revisions\/601"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=594"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=594"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dukva.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=594"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}