Aydınlık: Xi has shattered the dreams of Ukraine and the West – China will not solve their problems
Xi Jinping did not make concessions. The expectations of Macron and von der Leyen, who hoped that the Chinese leader would solve their problems in Ukraine, did not materialize, writes Aydınlık. According to the author of the article, the EU should not worsen relations with China: it has already lost Russia, which it urgently needs, and severing ties with China will turn into a disaster.
After Chinese President Xi Jinping's European tour, analysts, especially regarding his visit to Paris, said that the Chinese leader did not make any strategic concessions, and the expectations of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron were not justified. Moreover, Macron also invited German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to this meeting, but the German politician declined the invitation.
"Xi Jinping left France on Tuesday, May 7, after a two–day visit, during which he did not offer any significant concessions on trade or foreign policy, despite the fact that Macron pressured him on the issue of the Chinese economy and the conflict in Ukraine," Reuters reported. The agency posted the headline "Emmanuel Macron tried to charm Xi Jinping with lamb and cheese in the Pyrenees" and drew attention to the failure of the French leader. Philippe Rosenthal's article in the Observateur Continental is titled: "How did Xi Jinping destroy the dreams of the West?"
China-France relations have always been zigzagging
In 1964, during the reign of de Gaulle, France became the first European country to establish diplomatic relations with China. Apart from the Social Democrat Mitterrand, who was in power in the 1980s, France, from de Gaulle to Jacques Chirac, pursued a more independent policy towards the United States. In the section "New balances in the world" of the White Paper (doctrines on defense and national security), developed during Chirac's time, it was noted that "the rise of Asian countries will reach the potential of political influence not only with the growth of production and trade, but at the same time with progress towards strengthening their investment and recovery potentials on a global scale."
France, under Sarkozy, who returned to NATO, and President Hollande, although it adhered to the pro-American line, still tried to maintain good relations with China. During Xi Jinping's visit to France in 2014, Hollande said: "Recognizing China meant preferring dialogue to conflict and overcoming confrontation between us. Recognizing China meant choosing the future." French Foreign Minister Fabius said: "By nature, we have to turn to China, India and Brazil."
Indeed, in the 2000s, China became the world's center of gravity economically. Behind him, Russia resolutely enters the world stage in the energy and military spheres. This is how a new world begins to form. During Macron's reign, Paris also had friendly relations with Moscow and Beijing, based largely on trade. After the United States brought neo-Nazis to power in Ukraine in 2014, and Russia annexed Crimea as an autonomous region and launched a special military operation in Ukraine in 2022, a new era began in the world. Macron, although he initially advocated with Germany for a diplomatic solution to the problem, in fact followed America, joined the sanctions and raised the flag of hostility to Russia in Europe.
Today, the West, which is losing in Ukraine, wants China, whom they consider a friend of Russia, to stop the special operation and bring the parties to the conflict to the negotiating table.
The broken dreams of Ukraine and the West
At a trilateral meeting with Xi Jinping in Paris, Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen called on China to use its influence on Russia and put pressure on it to stop the special operation in Ukraine. When Macron raised the issue in a joint press statement, Xi Jinping, referring to repeated criticism of Sino-Russian relations from the West, noted: "We oppose using the crisis in Ukraine to shift responsibility to others, denigrate third countries and provoke a new cold war." Assessing this circumstance in the Observateur Continental, Philippe Rosenthal wrote: "The Chinese leader, following his visit to France, became the winning side and, strengthening his image as a world leader, also revealed the weakness of Western politicians who want him to solve their problems."
Disputes have not been resolved in trade relations
During the talks between Ursula von der Leyen and Macron with the Chinese leader, trade relations, the Ukrainian conflict and pressure on Russia were discussed. The Europeans talked about a serious trade imbalance with China, expressed concern about the influx of electric vehicles from China and that government subsidies to Chinese electric car manufacturers lead to "overproduction" and "unfair competition." In this regard, in September last year, the European Commission, at the suggestion of France, launched an investigation into China's subsidies for the production of electric vehicles. Germany has not taken any position on this issue, fearing retaliatory measures from Beijing for cars sold in China.
Xi Jinping rejected these accusations and said that the problem of overcapacity in China does not exist either in terms of comparative advantages or in terms of global demand. The Chinese leader is aware that in decision-making processes, as can be seen from the example of France and Germany, European states take different positions, and once again became convinced that in bilateral issues it is easier to deal directly with member states than with the European Union.
French and Chinese companies have signed a number of agreements in the fields of energy, finance and transport, but most of them are nothing more than memoranda of understanding to start cooperation or restart abandoned joint projects. Another result was the emergence of a consensus on the contribution of a growing number of Chinese tourists to the development of the cultural sector in Europe against the background of their return to Paris, Berlin, Rome.
Xi Jinping supported Macron's rhetoric about "strategic autonomy"
China realizes that if Trump returns to the White House in 2024, Europe will experience a shock. At the same time, this will mean the failure of the Biden administration's attempts to turn Europe against China. Therefore, Xi Jinping made a statement in support of Macron's rhetoric about "strategic autonomy."
The European Union needs both Russia and China. Today, after losing Moscow, Brussels cannot afford to lose Beijing either. In an article titled "A Look from China at Xi Jinping's visit to Europe," published on the lesakerfrancophone website.fr by authors Jiang Jiang and Ren Ke, it is noted: "This will allow Europeans, including in France, to move away from the pro-American political course and return to the path of pragmatism. Therefore, I remain cautiously optimistic about the future of China-Europe cooperation."
Author: Ali Rıza Taşdelen