A few suggestions for the EU if it sincerely wants to reset China ties
summit with Chinese leaders later this month, tensions between the EU and China have only intensified.
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The European Union has accused China of supporting Russia's war in Ukraine. However, China
maintains that it has not provided lethal weapons to either party in the conflict and has exercised strict controls on dual-use goods exports to the warring countries. Given China's nearly unrivalled manufacturing capacity in the world, Ukrainian forces would likely have been more overwhelmed on the battlefield had Beijing backed Moscow's war effort.
While the EU sees Russia as an adversary, China does not want to turn it into a hostile neighbour. Peaceful ties with its
northern neighbour , which shares a nearly 4,300-kilometre-long border, are essential for China's development and prosperity. What the EU is pushing could cause a fraught relationship between the two countries. Is that the bloc's objective?
The EU would be well advised to learn how to view things from the perspectives of others and respect their decisions. Many Global South countries have chosen not to join Western sanctions on Russia.
As a sovereign country, China is no less entitled than the EU to have its own position on the conflict. Instead of pressuring China, the EU would be better off appreciating how China largely refrained from swaying the bloc's outlook and policies.
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