While supporting Russia-Ukraine conflict, Beijing seeks to deepen trade ties with the EU

Brussels: Trying to strengthen trade connections with the EU while also supporting the Russia-Ukraine war is a delicate balancing act that is likely to become unstable in the coming months for China as what the communist nation seeks to realise in collaboration with Russia is fundamentally conflicting with the EU's requirement for border security, according to an article on Portal Plus authored by Valerio Fabbri.

Any diplomatic gimmicks China pulls in relation to talks with Ukraine are therefore not to be believed and will simply paralyse EU efforts to lessen China's role in the Ukraine issue. As China tries to hack its way into strengthening its own capabilities, restrictions on high-tech exports to and from China are likely to be another element in putting the cybersecurity capabilities of Europe to the test. 90 per cent of the rare earth metal used in the EU today comes from China.

The test of the EU's cybersecurity skills in the upcoming months will be another source of worry. When it comes to rejecting Chinese meddling in their domestic politics, member states are utterly divided, Portal Plus reported.

There are significant security and information manipulation threats in Europe, and there is an increasing need to systematise risk mapping and develop instruments for defence against Chinese attempts to unsettle the region's politics.

The EU and China are probably going to have pointless discussions about Ukraine until there are enough assurances of withstanding shocks. On the other hand, China will attempt to strengthen these ties in order to prolong the fight because it gains from Russia's involvement.
When Taiwan's connections to the United States are strengthened, Beijing will unavoidably respond, and the EU must be prepared with the necessary instruments and willpower to influence China's Russia policy in a significant way. China will probably perceive any EU intervention in Taiwan as an alliance with the US, reported Portal Plus.

From a defence perspective, the EU is determined to support NATO as a guarantee of security in the region. On the other hand, China is trying to destabilize the region with its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) investments, which in practicality has been questioned on many occasions as the majority of projects have failed or been frozen, Fabbri said.

Smaller nations have been a good illustration of this, like Montenegro, which spent more than USD 1 billion to create a 41 km long motorway. This was a debt trap that was also corrupt, especially for a nation with a small, declining GDP, according to Portal Plus.
Writing for Portal Plus, Valerio Fabrii said that lack of intervention by the EU is likely to fuel Chinese aggression and convince it that its ambitions of setting up a new world order that is not US-led are correct. (ANI)