China’s President, Xi Jinping
Together, Brussels and Beijing can reconfigure global power in a balance where Europe counts and China gains legitimacy as a responsible power.
The war with Iran spelled the death of the old global order. Europe was not even consulted before Washington attacked Iran together with Israel — proof that the continent is trapped between moral indignation and geopolitical irrelevance.
If Europe wants to continue importing, it must turn your gaze to the eastredefining China not as an adversary in absolute terms, but as a balancing power, says Ningrong Liuprofessor at the University of Hong Kong and expert on globalization leadership issues, in an opinion piece in .
For China too, this moment is decisivesays Liu. The American president Donald Trump launched wars in Venezuela and Iran, turning them into levers to consolidate US advantage and block Beijing’s efforts to expand trade and influence — while at the same time courting Beijing.
China recently announced a growth target economical from 4.5 to 5%, to lowest in decades. External pressure and internal tension converge, making credible partnerships abroad more vital than ever.
O pragmatic engagement, not moral posturingis the only way for Europe to regain relevance. For China, a Stronger Europe offers Beijing a credible partner in both the strategic and economic arena.
According to Liu, resilience for Europe and credibility for China are objectives complementary: Europe cannot afford paralysis; China cannot afford distrust.
Together, they can reconfigure global power in a balance in which Europe counts and China gains legitimacy as a responsible power.
In the first placeEurope and China cannot let ambiguity Define your relationships. If divergences are not managed pragmaticallyEurope will remain hostage to suspicion and China will continue to be the target of distrust.
A Europe’s biggest frustration with Beijing is his position on the war in Ukraine. China did not condemn or support the Russian invasion. For Europe, this compromises its moral and security posture.
A ambiguity breeds distrust and locks Brussels into suspicion rather than strategy, eroding European resilience, notes the Hong Kong professor.
Beijing, however, sees ambiguity as pragmatism — avoid direct alignment with Moscow without, however, replicating Western condemnation. In China’s eyes, the European outrage is hypocriticaltaking into account Europe’s responses to North American aggressions against sovereignty in Venezuela and Iran. Europe cannot excuse its own ambiguity while demanding absolute clarity from China.
The path forward requires reciprocity. Europe must stop using condemnation as a substitute for politics. China must demonstrate, through concrete gesturesthat its ambiguity does not mean indifference to stability.
Only then can you Europe regains resiliencefreeing itself from geopolitical paralysis, and China gains credibility as a responsible actor on the most important issue facing Europe today.
SecondlyEurope has become indispensable for China in trade and cutting-edge technological development, and vice versa. Still, trade continues to be simultaneously an incentive and a collision point.
Last year, the bilateral trade reached 850 billion dollarsan increase of 6 percent. The European Union has become the second largest destination for Chinese exports. China also regained its status as Germany’s main trading partner.
A visit of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz Beijing reflects an unavoidable truth: no access to the Chinese marketit will be difficult to revive the German economy.
But relationships are fraught with tension. Europe is alarmed by the rise in Chinese exports; China resents European protectionist reflexes.
The price commitment agreement in the electric vehicle sector, which avoided the application of a 35.3% anti-subsidy duty, demonstrates that rivalry can be managed without confrontation, opening space for cooperation in low carbon sectors. Both parties share goals in terms of green energy and climate change, but hesitancy continues to impede progress.
which remains blocked, is a litmus test. If Brussels can negotiate a , despite its ambiguity vis-à-vis Ukraine, What prevents you from doing the same with China??
The answer does not reside in values, but in political will and in the capacity for discernment, writes Liu.
ThirdlyEurope has emerged as one of the main victims by the North American sanctions regime and competition between great powers. To change this, you have to recover its tradition of independent diplomacyand. China’s role is to make this choice easier and more credible, responding to European concerns.
History demonstrates the Europe’s capacity for independence strategic. In 1950, Denmark, currently under pressure from Trump over Greenland, was a of the first western countriesat the time alongside the United Kingdom, the recognize the People’s Republic of China.
In a landmark moment in 1964, France Charles de Gaulle became the first great Western power to establish full relationships at the level of ambassador with China. But after Trump’s re-election, the US took advantage of its “Nixon moment”, abruptly changing its stance towards Beijing, while Europe did not know how to find its “De Gaulle moment“.
The future of Europe is not about choosing sidesbut for choosing independence. In a turbulent world where both Europe and China face decisive choices, pragmatic ties with China are not a surrender of values but a renewal of purpose: Europe can reinforce its resilience and strategic autonomy.
China has made repeated approaches to Europe. But credibility requires more than open gestures. Demands to respond directly to Europe’s concerns, concludes Ningrong Liu.
