- Berlin: Beijing’s sanctions are ‘inappropriate escalation’
- Baidu’s stock market homecoming
- Science fiction: stories from the future
- Do central aluminum bearings need to be opened?
- EU circles: NGOs were not negotiated at CAI
- Profile: Anika Laudien
Historical caesuras can usually only be recognized as such from a certain distance in time. The current exchange of blows between China and the EU, with mutual sanctions and accusations regarding the situation of the Muslim minority in Xinjiang, already has the potential to do so: Europe has sat up and sanctioned China for human rights violations for the first time since the Tiananmen massacre.
But for a turning point, it needs more. The decisive factor will be whether the West succeeds in maintaining its unified position vis-à-vis the People’s Republic. Or will Beijing once again resort to Niccolò Machiavelli’s idea of “divide et impera”: Using its economic influence to break ranks in Brussels and weaken Europe’s position?
Amelie Richter shows that the dispute is already entering the next round: Berlin, Brussels, and Paris have summoned the Chinese ambassadors for a report, while Beijing is being assured of Moscow’s solidarity at a meeting in Guilin in southern China. Will the current escalation even cause the investment agreement to fail?
Finn Mayer-Kuckuk, meanwhile, takes a look at the IPO of search engine operator and AI developer Baidu in Hong Kong. In addition to the current share values, he focuses on the phenomenon of Chinese corporations increasingly issuing securities on domestic stock exchanges – and what is actually behind this new attachment to their home country.
Gregor Koppenburg and Jörn Petring take you into the world of Chinese science fiction literature. The books by Liu Cixin, Chen Quifan, and Hao Jingfang are read millions of times at home and abroad. Even the central government in Beijing has discovered a soft spot for this genre. Because, as always in China, this field is also highly political.
I wish you many new insights while reading,
Michael Radunski
Feature
Berlin: Beijing’s sanctions are ‘inappropriate escalation’
Following Beijing’s sanctions against politicians, organizations, and academics, the diplomatic consequences have reached several European capitals – including Berlin: “The Chinese ambassador, Wu Ken, was asked to meet urgently with State Secretary Miguel Berger today,” the Foreign Office said in response to a query from China.Table. In the conversation, Berger said he reflected the German government’s view that the punitive measures “represent an inappropriate escalation that unnecessarily strains EU-China relations.” The step was “incomprehensible in terms of content” and had to be reversed immediately.
Paris and Brussels went a step further, where the respective Chinese ambassadors were officially summoned. Cao Zhongming, China’s ambassador to Belgium, has been summoned to the foreign ministry over the sanctions against a member of Belgium’s Chamber of Deputies, Samuel Cogolati, the AFP news agency reported, citing government sources. Belgium’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sophie Wilmès had already strongly condemned the sanctions against Cogolati on Monday and announced that she would “follow up” on the issue with other EU colleagues.
Paris: China’s ambassador has crossed borders
In the French capital, China’s ambassador Lu Shaye has been summoned to the Quai d’Orsay. On Tuesday morning, at the request of France’s chief diplomat Jean-Yves Le Drian, Lu was informed of all the “complaints” at hand, the daily La Depeche reported.
Continue reading now
… and get free access to this Professional Briefing for a month.
Are you already a guest at the China.Table? Log in now