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Last week, European Commission President von der Leyen, who is about to visit China this week with French President Macron, delivered a “principled speech” on China-EU relations in Brussels, which caused an uproar between China and Europe.
Von der Leyen’s speech is quite tough, especially what China cannot accept is that she linked the future prospects of China-EU relations with China’s performance in the “conflict” between Russia and Ukraine, which is actually a kind of coercion in China’s view . At the same time, she also called for Europe to adopt a “bolder” attitude towards China, which also bordered on demagoguery. Considering that she will visit China in a few days, her tough remarks are actually setting the tone for her visit to China. In view of this, the Chinese side used the names of the director of the European Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese ambassador to the EU to criticize and even refute her to varying degrees.
The author believes that if Von der Leyen continues to stick to her tough stance after she comes to China, it may be difficult for her trip to China to come true, and it may even affect French President Macron’s visit to China.
EU is putting pressure on China
Before Von der Leyen’s visit to China, a series of remarks on China-EU relations were full of contradictions, but they were tough, and full of coercion and provocation. The German “Süddeutsche Zeitung” stated that she showed the world what she will show in Beijing. This made her visit sensitive and even unpopular.
As far as China-EU relations are concerned, the core of von der Leyen’s remarks in Brussels before his visit to China is: China and Europe will not “decouple”, but Europe must balance its relationship with China and remove the risk of relations with China and its dependence on China. Such remarks are of course sharp, but what is even more unacceptable to China is her provocative and coercive remarks.
She publicly called for Europe to adopt a “bolder” attitude towards China, and also said that China “represses internally and demonstrates self-confidence externally”. In particular, she linked China’s “performance” in the Ukrainian war with the prospect of future China-EU relations, which is actually tantamount to saying: China must stand with the EU in this war, so that China-EU relations can be good.
A very obvious feature of von der Leyen’s speech is that it is full of contradictions and divisions. Although she made such sharp comments on China-EU relations, she also emphasized that the EU simply cannot afford the consequences of a complete break with China. So her countermeasure is: “de-risk” rather than “decoupling” China-EU relations.
Of course, von der Leyen’s remarks may have considerations for balancing public opinion in Europe, and there are also reasons for explaining to the European Commission, and even explaining and balancing factors to the United States. But from the perspective of Chinese public opinion, especially from the standpoint of China’s official position, making such remarks on the eve of the visit to China can basically be judged as hostile and coercive.
For these remarks of Von der Leyen, Chinese officials quickly responded.
Wang Lutong, director of the European Department of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, firmly responded: The EU is playing a dangerous game. Wang Lutong tweeted on March 31: “The EU side has recently discussed a lot about ‘reducing risk'” but “if there is any risk, it is to combine trade with ideology and national security. linking up creates a risk of group confrontation.”
On the same day, Fu Cong, head of the Chinese mission to the EU and ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary, said in an interview with China’s CGTN that he was “somewhat disappointed” by the content of Von der Leyen’s speech.
Fu Cong called von der Leyen’s approach “schizophrenia”. Fu Cong described: “If you understand the content of her speech that day, you will feel as if two people are arguing, and there is no coherence before and after.” Von der Leyen worries about being seen as too soft on China, especially by her American allies.
Obviously, Chinese officials are “responding” to Von der Leyen, which is also to clarify China’s position for her visit to China. In this way, the confrontation between China and Europe before von der Leyen’s visit to China has already begun.
The author estimates that it will be difficult for von der Leyen to fulfill his wish, at most it is just a gesture of both sides.
At present, the European media are rumored that von der Leyen will compete for NATO secretary-general in the second half of the year, and the attitude of the United States and major European countries is extremely important for this position. Maybe von der Leyen needs to show “political correctness” very much now.
Why did Macron give von der Leyen a chance?
Regarding the Sino-European conflict before Von der Leyen’s visit to China, Macron’s visit to China has actually become subtle. A new phenomenon is currently: news from France shows that Von der Leyen, who was invited to visit China with Macron, and Macron are actually two visits. In the French press releases to the media, Von der Leyen is rarely mentioned. Delane. This may indicate that during this visit to China, France is already cutting off Von der Leyen.
There is a public opinion in China that Macron invited Von der Leyen to visit China out of the consideration of “one is a good face and the other is a bad face”, so Macron took the initiative. At the same time, von der Leyen’s creation of topics is also conducive to the realization of Macron’s visit to China.
According to the author’s understanding, Macron’s visit to China has two major focuses: one is the issue of the Russia-Ukraine war. France hopes that China can promote the ceasefire and settlement of the Russia-Ukraine war, and asks China to put pressure on Russia, but this requires a balance with China. Don’t force people too much; the second is Sino-French economic cooperation. Macron brought French companies such as Airbus and Alstom with the delegation. Obviously, if Von der Leyen’s visit to China takes a tough stance on the Ukrainian issue and China-EU relations, it will itself constitute a frame of reference for Macron, which will put pressure on Macron in France and Europe; Von der Leyen’s improper operation has made his stance tougher, and it will be difficult for Macron to achieve his goal of visiting China this time.
There is also a kind of Chinese public opinion that: this time Macron took Von der Leyen to visit China, “it is nothing more than (France)’s weight is not enough, and the EU came to join.” “This can show that Macron can not only represent France, but also speak for the entire EU. This is also to please the EU and pave the way for him to seek international positions after leaving office.”
There is a public opinion that is worthy of reference: Macron came to China as the French president to deepen the construction of Sino-French relations, so what is the role of von der Leyen? China’s diplomacy has always had a principle, that is, to resolve bilateral issues bilaterally and oppose multilateralization, so Macron actually posed a difficult problem for China.
However, according to the information I know: As long as China and France do not have serious confrontation over the Russia-Ukraine war this time, especially if Macron does not stand with von der Leyen to openly pressure China, China will still respect and unite with Macron and France. His goal of visiting China is still expected to be achieved. Objectively speaking, when Germany repeatedly wants to balance China in the bilateral economic and trade field, why doesn’t China try to balance Germany, not to mention that France’s related industries are also very powerful and distinctive.
(Note: The author is a policy researcher. This article only represents the author’s personal views. The editor’s email address is [email protected])