- Angela Merkel says Europe is still keen to participate in infrastructure scheme despite concerns about spread of Chinese influence
- EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker seeks to reassure Chinese leader Xi Jinping that view of China as ‘strategic rival’ is a compliment
European leaders sought to reassure China over trade and cooperation on Tuesday by suggesting they were still open to joining China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who is hosting his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the final leg of his European tour, had invited German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to the meeting in Paris, where the four stressed their support for multilateralism and the pursuit of cooperation between major powers.
The visit took place amid growing European scepticism about China’s influence and follows a decision by Brussels to brand China a “systemic rival” in a policy paper earlier this month.
The scheme has caused increased concern in the West about the extent to which it will help spread Chinese influence, especially since Italy became the first G7 economy to join the project over the weekend.
But Merkel stressed it was an important project that Europeans still wanted to participate in.
She continued: “We, as Europeans, want to play an active part and that must lead to a certain reciprocity and we are still wrangling over that a bit.
“We are seeing the project as a good visualisation of interaction, interrelation and interdependence.”
Xi also said China’s process of opening up its economy to the world had allowed the country to achieve in the space of 40 years what the Europeans had managed over the course of the industrial revolution.
“We will continue to open up,” he said, “and to make the world a better open economy.”
“The Belt and Road Initiative has enriched the world’s multilateral system, we welcome all countries, including France, to join,” Xi said.
The US has also put increasing pressure on European countries to block the Chinese tech giant Huawei, which it sees as a security threat, from playing a role in European communications networks.
Despite her support for Xi’s stance on multilateralism, Merkel was still keen to express support for America’s role in upholding global order.
“The triangle between EU, China and US is very important. Without the US, we will not be able to have multilateralism. Our relations from the European side are obviously very important,” Merkel said.
However, she also noted that the trade war between the US and CHina was “hitting our German economy” and disturbing the balance.
Source: SCMP
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 