EU Mulls Review Of China Policy, Again
The EU foreign policy official said that the European Union's executive and diplomatic bodies are preparing a report on the review of relations with China.
Josep Borrell's findings are surprising because it is the second time this year that the European Commission and Borrell have taken such a step, concluding in April that there is no need to change the EU strategy for China adopted in 2019. It cannot be extended.
Two senior EU diplomats said the bloc was under pressure from Beijing, as well as some member states, to refrain from portraying China as a systemic adversary, but Borrell did not say whether that would be part of its considerations.
It is also understood that the EU's diplomatic arm, suspended during the pandemic, wants to revive an EU-China summit attended by the leaders of the Council and the European Commission and China's No. 2 Prime Minister Li Keqiang. But Beijing has so far refused to accept EU requests to resume dialogue on human rights.
“After the summer, together with the European Commission, I will present a report to the Council of Europe that will analyze our relations with China to see whether the current strategy should be revised,” Borrell told Spanish newspaper El Pais. published the interview Thursday.
A senior EU official said the planned document would be “a kind of performance report” based on a 2019 document that saw China as both a partner, economic rival and systemic adversary. The aim is to submit it to EU national leaders before the Council meeting in October.
The official added that there was a need to “build unity” as EU member states have started to build bilateral ties with senior Chinese officials in recent months. For example, in early July, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron held a virtual meeting with President Xi Jinping.
Other EU countries, notably Lithuania, have called for a tougher stance against China over human rights abuses. Borel rejects such an approach.
“While we may have different opinions on Hong Kong or the Uyghurs, what [former US President Donald] Trump called cutting economic ties with China is beyond our intentions and against our interests,” he said. stated. from Chinese partners. . Wang Yin in Uzbekistan earlier this month.
The EU's 27 foreign ministers are expected to discuss China at an informal meeting in Slovenia, which currently holds the Council presidency, in early September, followed by a meeting of EU leaders in early October.
Over the past year, the EU has taken a tougher stance on China, adopting unprecedented sanctions against Chinese officials involved in mass detention in Xinjiang and cooperating with the United States on selective policies such as the Belt and Road Initiative. Demon.
Sarah Ann Aarup reports.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated which EU officials would discuss China at an informal meeting in Slovenia in September; EU foreign ministers were expected to do so, followed by a debate between EU leaders in early October.
