State Council on Employment & Price Stability - Wang Yi Speaks to Israeli & Canadian FMs - Liu Zongyi on Afghanistan - Shanghai COVID Outbreak - Zhong Sheng: America's Cold War Mentality
Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy from the Thursday, April 07, 2022, edition of the People’s Daily.
Page 1: At the top of the page, is a brief report (English report) about Xi Jinping and his Armenian counterpart Vahagnchaturyan exchanging congratulations on the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The other lead story on the page talks about the eight-point central regulations, which were first announced in December 2012. The headline basically emphasises that the eight regulations have changed China. It says that March 2022 was the 102nd consecutive month that the CCDI and the NSC have announced details of investigation and punishment linked to violations of the eight regulations. This is essentially an introductory piece that leads to more feature pieces about the improvements in style since the eight-point regulations were adopted.
Next, there’s a short report informing us that Xi Jinping will attend a gathering at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday morning to honour those who have made outstanding contributions to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.
Fourth, let’s look at the report (detailed English report) on the State Council’s weekly meeting. The report offers this assessment of the current situation:
“The meeting noted that major economic indicators are generally within an appropriate range, yet both the domestic and external environments are faced with growing complexities and uncertainties, some of which are beyond expectations. The recovery of the world economy remains sluggish. The global commodities markets, including those of food and energy, are experiencing major fluctuations. COVID-19 cases are flaring up across the country. Market entities are facing mounting difficulties. Economic circulation is held back by certain constraints. All these are posing new and greater downward pressure on economic activity. It is imperative to remain confident and, at the same time, take seriously and stay alert to new problems and new challenges.”
And then this: “Keeping major economic indicators within an appropriate range is mainly about ensuring the overall stability of employment and prices. Greater efforts will be made to maintain job security by keeping the operations of market entities stable. Multi-pronged measures will be adopted to ensure unimpeded logistics services, stability of industrial and supply chains, and food and energy security.”
After this, the report talks about the policy measures adopted during this meeting:
First, hard-hit sectors like catering, retail, tourism, civil aviation, highway, waterway and railway transportation will be permitted to defer payments of old-age insurance premiums during the second quarter of this year.
The policy of expanded scope of unemployment insurance benefits will remain effective on a time-limited basis. By the end of this year, all urban and rural unemployed people who are in the scheme will continue to receive unemployment subsidies, and all unemployed migrant workers in the scheme will receive provisional living allowances.
The proportion of refunding unemployment insurance premiums for small firms that make no cuts or minimal cuts to staff numbers will be increased, from 60 percent to as high as 90 percent for eligible localities. In addition, local governments will be allowed to take 4 percent from the balance of the employment insurance funds to support vocational training programs, and provide one-off employment and training subsidies to hard-hit small firms which are temporarily unable to continue normal production and operation.
In addition, the report says:
“The meeting urged greater efforts to implement the prudent monetary policy to keep liquidity reasonably sufficient. Re-lending for agricultural and small enterprises will be increased, and instruments to support inclusive loans to micro and small businesses will be harnessed to expand the volume and coverage of financing for micro, small and medium enterprises while lowering costs. ‘Over the past years, we refrained from flooding the economy with mass stimulus. We must explore every possible means to anchor expectations and boost consumption and investment. This cannot be done in the absence of financial support. More market-based approaches should be employed. Relying solely on public finance is unsustainable,’ Premier Li said. Policies on providing financial support for consumption and effective investment will be explored. Financial services for new urban residents will be enhanced, and those for government-subsidized housing improved. Financing needs of key projects will be met as a matter of priority. Efforts will be made toward a fairly rapid increase in medium- and long-term loans to manufacturers. Financing in key sectors and areas of weakness will be supported. Targeted re-lending arrangements for technological innovation and elderly-care services will be set up, and the People's Bank of China will provide re-lending support for 60 percent and 100 percent of the loan principals respectively.”
Page 2: There are a fair number of articles on the page reporting on the COVID-19 outbreak in the country. But the approach to the reporting is one of projecting control and focussing on the government’s response. For instance, there’s a report about the briefing by the State Council’s Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism from yesterday. The report quotes NHC’s Mi Feng as saying that China will unwaveringly stick to the dynamic zero-COVID policy. Yesterday, China reported some 20,000 cases in all, which is the highest ever reported daily caseload in the country. From March 1 to April 5, a total of 176,455 local infections were reported nationwide, affecting 29 provinces, as per PD.
Lei Zhenglong from the NHC said that the current outbreak is characterised by a combination of scaled outbreaks and sporadic cases, and the occurrence of more spillovers and new cases. Lei added that since March, five previously epidemic-stricken provinces such as Guangdong, Shandong and Hebei have shown good trends, but outbreaks in Shanghai and Jilin Province are still developing.
With regard to Shanghai, the report has Mi Feng saying that the situation there still remains “critical.” The government will continue to dispatch more support forces to Shanghai as needed. So far, more than 38,000 medical personnel from 15 provinces across the country have been sent to Shanghai. The report also quotes Wang Guiqiang, head of Peking University First Hospital's department of infectious diseases, as saying that present most cases of infection in China were mild or asymptomatic. But Wang added that these individuals could develop symptoms and there is a concern about those who are older, have underlying diseases, and have not been vaccinated or not fully vaccinated. Therefore, they require medical attention, which means that they must be placed in makeshift medical facilities.
The other pandemic-related reports talk about Party members rushing to be at the frontlines and serving the community in dealing with the outbreak in Shanghai. There’s another positive report about Shanghai’s National Exhibition and Convention Center being converted into a makeshift hospital with a capacity of 40,000 beds. Finally, there’s a report about the measures being taken to control the outbreak in Jiutai District in Changchun, Jilin Province. The focus in this piece is also to highlight the work being done to implement and achieve a zero-COVID approach. (Quick Thought: It’s not surprising but it’s worth noting that the people are essentially absent from any of this reporting. It’s essentially from the perspective of the measures being taken by the Party and the government towards a policy goal.)
Anyway, three other reports on the COVID situation that are worth going through:
Shanghai eases child separation under COVID policy but extends lockdown
Viral Recordings Tap Into Anger at Shanghai’s Covid Response
China’s Services Sector Posts Steepest Decline Since Pandemic’s Start
Page 3: First, a report (English report) about Wang Yi’s chat with Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid. This is an interesting dialogue, which covered trade ties, the Palestine issue, the Ukraine war, and the Iran nuclear deal. Some key points:
Wang said that China appreciates Israel’s adherence to the one-China policy and understanding of China's legitimate propositions in safeguarding its core interests. He added that China believes Israel will continue to support China's efforts to safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests.
The two sides agreed to speed up the negotiation and signing of a free trade agreement.
“Wang said China is glad to see Israel establish and develop normal friendly relations with countries in the region, which should be part of the overall reconciliation in the Middle East (essentially an endorsement of the Abraham Accords). The prolonged stagnation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is not in the interests of all parties. Palestine also has the legitimate right to establish an independent state.”
On the Israel-Palestine issue, Wang added that “China supports all efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East and is willing to facilitate direct negotiations between the two sides.”
“The two sides also exchanged views on the Ukraine issue. Wang briefed Lapid on China’s principled position, saying that all parties now hope to realize a ceasefire and restore peace. But for a cease-fire, there can be no more moves that add fuel to the flame; for peace, there should be no extreme pressure. Dialogue and negotiation should be the right direction supported by all parties.”
Although it’s not in the paper today, Wang Yi also spoke to his Canadian counterpart this week. Xinhua’s report on the call is interesting.
“During their conversation, Wang said that the people of China and Canada have enjoyed long-term friendly exchanges, noting that Canada is one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China (PRC). However, in recent years, China-Canada relations have suffered a serious setback due to the Meng Wanzhou case, which is something we do not want to see, Wang said. The essence of this case lies in the U.S. suppression over Chinese high-tech enterprises by coercion, a shameful behavior that everyone could see clearly, Wang said. No country should act as a facilitator of such unilateral bullying, and any country targeted by the U.S. approach has the right to make necessary responses, he added. Noting that China always views and handles China-Canada relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, Wang said the current situation of bilateral relations is not in the interests of both countries, calling on Canada to face up to the problems and cooperate with China. He further put forward three proposals in this regard.”
Canada should view China objectively and maintain a steady and pragmatic China policy…China and Canada have no historical disputes or real conflict of interest. China hopes that Canada, in spirit of mutual benefit and win-win, will do more to enhance mutual trust and promote bilateral relations.
The two countries should respect each other's core interests and not create new obstacles to the development of bilateral relations. The one-China principle is the political foundation of China-Canada relations, Wang said, adding that if the Taiwan question is not handled properly, China-Canada relations will suffer fundamental damage.
Canada should uphold its independence and eliminate unnecessary external interference.
Second, there’s this exchange from Wednesday’s MoFA press conference that has been shared as a story in PD:
Beijing Daily: The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a press release on April 5 that the State Department has approved a sale of up to $95 million worth of military technical support and related equipment to the “Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States”. It mainly consists of training, planning, deployment, operation, maintenance, and sustainment of the Patriot Air Defense System and other equipment. Do you have any comment?
Zhao Lijian: US arms sales to China’s Taiwan region seriously violate the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, especially the August 17 Communique, seriously undermine China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, and severely harm the China-US relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. China rejects and deplores this. The US side should abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, cancel the above-mentioned arms sale plan, stop arms sales to and military contacts with Taiwan. China will take firm and forceful measures to resolutely safeguard its sovereignty and security interests.
Third, we have the 7th commentary in the Zhong Sheng series on the Ukraine war. It says that “America's deep-rooted Cold War mentality is the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis. Now that the US is back to its old tricks/tactics, it will only be all the more difficult to resolve the problem and will worsen the global security situation.” 美国根深蒂固的冷战思维，是造成乌克兰危机的根源。如今美国故伎重施，只会让解决问题变得更加困难，恶化世界安全形势.
The piece references Joe Biden’s speech in Warsaw to say that it harked back to the Cold War and sought to draw new ideological dividing lines. The article doesn’t mention Biden by name, but says that he spoke about the unity of and the deterrence of the military power and economic sanctions imposed by the “Western world.” “Some media outlets have pointed out that American leaders have talked about almost everything, except mentioning how a ceasefire and peace can be achieved.” 有媒体指出，美国领导人几乎什么都谈到了，却唯独没有提到如何停火止战实现和平，这表明冷战虽然已结束30多年，但美国一些政客的冷战思维从未褪去.
The next paragraph further blames NATO’s eastward expansion and Western policies towards Russia post the Cold War as the reason for the Ukraine war. The article argues:
“Since the outbreak of the Ukraine crisis, the United States has not played a role in seeking or promoting peace talks. Instead, it has continued to play a geo-strategic ‘grand chess game’ with a Cold War mentality. The United States, which sees the crisis as a way to stoke ideological rivalries and deepen Europe’s strategic dependence on the United States, is keen to stoke tensions, fuel wars and force other countries to take sides. In addition to targeting Russia, the US has repeatedly spread false information, smearing China and distorting China's responsible position of promoting peace talks…The United States has repeatedly claimed that it does not seek a ‘new Cold War”, but it always takes the opportunity to suppress and contain China and Russia and other countries, regards China and Russia as major strategic competitors, and makes arrangements that harm others and benefit itself.” 乌克兰危机爆发以来，美国非但没有为劝和促谈发挥作用，反而继续抱持冷战思维经营地缘战略“大棋局”。美国认为可以借危机挑起意识形态对立，加深欧洲对美国的战略依附，因而热衷于推高紧张、拱火助战，还逼迫其他国家选边站队。除了将矛头对准俄罗斯外，美国还一再散布虚假信息，对中国进行抹黑污蔑，歪曲中国劝和促谈的负责任立场...美方一再声称不寻求打“新冷战”，却时时处处借机打压遏制中国和俄罗斯等国，将中俄视为主要战略竞争对手，并作出损人利己的安排.
The next paragraph argues that American calls to Europe to cut off supplies of Russian crude and gas supplies and offers to support European countries as they do so are nothing but part of a “strategic plot.” It talks about the US being an exporter of gas and says that it’s not the US that’s going to be feeling the pain of supplies being cut off. (Quick thought: Of course, this is a horribly disingenuous argument. But then, what of this is not disingenuous. The American public certainly are feeling the pinch of high prices. Corporations perhaps are making good money.) Anyway, the article also says that America’s allies have learned again and again that the US is “unreliable and untrustworthy.”
The next paragraph says that “to truly solve the Ukrainian crisis, we must abandon the Cold War mentality, the logic of safeguarding our own security at the expense of other countries' security, the practice of seeking regional security by expanding military blocs, and seek to build a balanced, effective and sustainable European security mechanism through dialogue and negotiation on the basis of attaching importance to and respecting the legitimate security concerns of all countries.” 要真正解决乌克兰危机，就必须摒弃冷战思维，摒弃以损害他国安全为代价维护自身安全的逻辑，摒弃以扩张军事集团谋求地区安全的做法，在重视和尊重各国合理安全关切基础上，通过对话谈判寻求构建均衡、有效、可持续的欧洲安全机制.
Finally, a short report on Wang Chen’s chat with the First Vice President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Niger Kalla Ankourao.
Page 4: There’s a report about Heilongjiang Province’s new plan for development of the bio-economy. It says that “by 2025, the total scale of the province's bio-economy will reach more than 420 billion yuan, and the proportion of added value in the regional GDP will increase to 10%.”
Page 6: There’s a long article bylined 闻言, talking about the fundamental principles for promoting the construction of a beautiful China. This basically argues that it is important to study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilisation.
Some of the key points made in the piece are:
The article emphasises the importance of fighting the tough battle against pollution. It says that General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasised that “the main leaders of local party committees and governments at all levels are the first people responsible for ecological environmental protection in their respective administrative areas, and should take overall responsibility for the quality of ecological environment in their respective administrative areas. It is necessary to personally deploy important work, personally ask about major issues, personally coordinate important links, personally supervise important cases, compact responsibilities at all levels, and implement them at all levels; it is necessary to establish a scientific and reasonable evaluation system, and the evaluation results are to be used as an important basis for the rewards, punishments and promotions by leading bodies and for cadres at all levels…” 习近平总书记强调，地方各级党委和政府主要领导是本行政区域生态环境保护第一责任人，对本行政区域的生态环境质量负总责，要做到重要工作亲自部署、重大问题亲自过问、重要环节亲自协调、重要案件亲自督办，压实各级责任，层层抓落实；要建立科学合理的考核评价体系，考核结果作为各级领导班子和领导干部奖惩和提拔使用的重要依据... It also talks about the importance of taking the “political responsibility of ecological civilization construction” while keeping in mind the 国之大者.
“All Party members should be aware of the urgency and arduousness of protecting the ecological environment and controlling environmental pollution, the importance and necessity of strengthening the construction of ecological civilization, and truly make up their minds to do a good job in controlling environmental pollution and building the ecological environment, so as to create a good work and life environment for the people.” 全党同志都要清醒认识保护生态环境、治理环境污染的紧迫性和艰巨性，清醒认识加强生态文明建设的重要性和必要性，真正下决心把环境污染治理好、把生态环境建设好，为人民创造良好生产生活环境.
“Focussing on the present and the long-term, we should persist in key breakthroughs, grasp the main contradictions and main aspects of contradictions on the basis of overall advancement, take specific targeted measures, and strive to achieve a balance by taking into account the overall situation and the local situation, a combination of the root cause, and the symptoms, a convergence of gradual progress and making breakthroughs in order to achieve the unity of overall progress and key breakthroughs.” 既立足当前，又着眼长远，坚持重点突破，在整体推进的基础上抓主要矛盾和矛盾的主要方面，采取有针对性的具体措施，努力做到全局和局部相配套、治本和治标相结合、渐进和突破相衔接，实现整体推进和重点突破相统一.
There is an emphasis on making sure that green is the background colour for BRI.
“It is necessary to practice true multilateralism, effectively abide by and implement international rules…work together, do not point fingers at each other; persevere and do not waver; and keep your promise and do not break your word. 要践行真正的多边主义，有效遵守和实施国际规则，不能合则用、不合则弃。要携手合作，不要相互指责；要持之以恒，不要朝令夕改；要重信守诺，不要言而无信.
“General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that developed countries and developing countries are at different stages of development, and there are differences in their historical responsibilities and practical abilities on environmental issues. We should adhere to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, adhere to fair and equitable benefit sharing, and form a new climate governance system in which each country acts according to its capabilities.” 习近平总书记指出，发达国家和发展中国家处于不同发展阶段，在环境问题上的历史责任和现实能力存在差异。要坚持共同但有区别的责任等原则，坚持公平公正惠益分享，形成各尽所能的气候治理新体系.
Discussing the carbon peak and neutrality goals, the author says that this is “a major strategic decision made by the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core after careful consideration and based on the responsibility to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and the inherent requirements of achieving sustainable development. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that the realisation of carbon peak and neutrality is an extensive and profound economic and social systemic transformation, which should be correctly understood and grasped.” 这是以习近平同志为核心的党中央经过深思熟虑、基于推动构建人类命运共同体的责任担当和实现可持续发展的内在要求作出的重大战略决策。习近平总书记指出，实现碳达峰碳中和是一场广泛而深刻的经济社会系统性变革，要正确认识和把握.
Other Stories:
On the theory page, the lead piece is by Lu Zhongmei who is a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the CPPCC. She writes about Safe China, addressing issues such as political security, gang-related crimes, improving social governance, and adhering to the overall national security concept. The lead story on the international page is about the CIA’s black sites overseas, which is an example of “America's wanton abuse of the rule of law and human rights, and the American double standards on human rights.”
Also on the international page, there’s an article by Liu Zongyi, who writes about the four key themes emerging from the recent meeting of the foreign ministers of countries neighbouring Afghanistan. He writes that:
First, the meeting “reflects the urgent hope and firm determination of Afghanistan’s neighbours to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan and regional stability through coordination and cooperation. At present, Afghanistan is facing a serious economic and humanitarian crisis due to the suspension of international aid owing to the unilateral sanctions of the United States and the West and the freezing of billions of dollars of overseas assets by the United States. Around 55% of the population of Afghanistan is suffering from severe hunger. Afghanistan’s economy is heading for an ‘irreversible critical point’ (不可逆转的临界点) and various terrorist forces are still active. Considering this situation, China and Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries hope to further consolidate the consensus on the Afghanistan issue, discuss a ‘neighbouring countries plan’ to jointly promote stability in Afghanistan, support and help the Afghan people, and convey the ‘voice of neighbouring countries’ to the international community.”
Second, this is the first direct dialogue between all neighbouring countries and the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Liu writes: “Over the past six months since the Taliban came to power in Afghanistan, the overall political situation in Afghanistan has been basically determined and the Afghan Taliban regime has the support of the majority of the Afghan people. It is not an objective and realistic attitude for the international community to discuss the Afghan issue while bypassing the Taliban in Afghanistan. Every neighboring country hopes that Afghanistan will achieve peace, stability and prosperity, and that the Taliban in Afghanistan will effectively fight terrorism. The Taliban in Afghanistan also realise that in order to address people’s livelihood problems and find a self-reliant economic development path, it is necessary to integrate into regional economic cooperation with the help of neighbouring countries. The participation of representatives of the Afghan interim government will help the neighbouring countries and the international community directly understand the difficulties and demands of the Afghan people, and it will also help the neighbouring countries directly express their concerns on the Afghan issue to the representatives of the Afghan interim government, promote communication and understanding between the two sides, and urge both sides to meet each other halfway.” 阿富汗塔利班执政半年多来，阿政治大局基本确定，阿塔政权得到阿多数人的支持。国际社会要讨论阿富汗问题，绕开阿富汗塔利班不是一种客观现实的态度。每个邻国都希望阿富汗实现和平稳定繁荣，希望阿富汗塔利班切实打击恐怖主义。阿富汗塔利班也认识到，要解决民生问题、找到一条自力更生的经济发展道路离不开周边国家的帮助，需要融入地区经济合作。阿临时政府代表参会，有利于邻国和国际社会直接了解阿富汗人民的困难和诉求，也有利于邻国直接向阿临时政府代表表达在阿问题上的关切，促进双方的沟通和理解，促使双方相向而行.
Third, the meeting “further guided the Afghan Taliban to build an open and inclusive political structure.” Liu writes about the invitation to the foreign ministers of Qatar and Indonesia to the meeting and explains this by saying that these countries have “not only played an important role in promoting Afghanistan's peace process and internal reconciliation but have also pursued a relatively moderate and inclusive ethnic and religious policy and a steady and open foreign policy.” The idea seems to be that these countries provide examples to the Taliban of moderate Islamic countries. Liu says that these countries’ policies provide an “important guiding significance” for the Afghan Taliban. He then adds: “The Pashtuns have always played a leading role in the history of Afghanistan, but the equal participation of other ethnic groups is a necessary prerequisite for the stability of the country. This will involve a very complicated issue of de-centralisation, which requires full consultation.” 普什图人在阿富汗历史上一直发挥主导作用，但其他民族的平等参与是国家实现稳定的必要前提。这将涉及非常复杂的分权问题，需要充分协商.
In the fourth and final point, Liu writes about the US-Russia-China troika meeting that took place at the sidelines of this neighbours meeting. He says that this was the first time that US and Russian diplomats were meeting on an international platform since the “Ukraine crisis.” He then says that 20 years ago, the US launched a war in Afghanistan under the banner of fighting terrorism, “and last year it withdrew irresponsibly, which caused the situation in Afghanistan to deteriorate. For the current humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, international assistance is critical, and the United States and Europe must shoulder their due responsibilities. The United States should shoulder its responsibility and increase its humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, instead of plundering away life-saving money from poor countries like Afghanistan under various pretexts.” 20年前美国打着反恐旗号发动阿富汗战争，去年又不负责任地撤离，造成阿富汗局势不断恶化。对于目前阿富汗的人道主义危机，国际援助不可或缺，美国和欧洲必须要负起重要责任。美国理应负起应有责任，加大对阿人道主义援助力度，而不应以种种借口掠夺阿富汗这样贫穷国家的救命钱.
He ends by saying that the meeting demonstrates China’s sense of responsibility as a major power.
Finally, although this is not in PD today, here’s what MoFA’s Zhao Lijian said yesterday when asked about the killings in Bucha.
Reuters: Reports showed that many civilians have been killed in the Ukrainian town of Bucha. Ukraine said this is a war crime committed by Russia. Russia said the evidence presented was staged by the West to discredit it. Does China believe Russia when it said evidence of the civilian killings was staged by the West?
Zhao Lijian: China attaches great importance to the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and is highly concerned with the harm to civilians. We have put forward a six-point initiative on alleviating the humanitarian situation and taken concrete steps to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. The reports and images of civilian deaths in Bucha are deeply disturbing. The relevant circumstances and specific causes of the incident must be verified and ascertained. Humanitarian issues shouldn’t be politicized. Any accusations should be based on facts. Before the full picture is clear, all sides should exercise restraint and avoid unfounded accusations. China supports all initiatives and measures conducive to alleviating the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and stands ready to continue working with the international community to prevent harm to civilians.
On the situation in Pakistan, Zhao said:
Bloomberg: The Pakistani Prime Minister Imram Khan has on Sunday blocked a planned no-confidence vote and called for a fresh election. Does China have any response to this?
Zhao Lijian: China follows the principle of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs. China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners. History has proven time and again that China-Pakistan relations have always been unbreakable and rock-solid, no matter how the international landscape and their respective domestic situations may change. We believe that the overall situation of China-Pakistan cooperation and the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will not be affected by the political situation in Pakistan. As Pakistan’s iron-clad friend, we sincerely hope that all parties in Pakistan will remain united and work together for national development and stability.
Lastly, Zhao called the recent China-EU summit a “very successful meeting.” But the message from Europe appears to be very different. For instance, here’s Josep Borrell’s recent blog post:
“For Europeans this is a clear-cut case of aggression: Russia has inexcusably violated its smaller neighbour’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. These are principles that are supposedly sacrosanct in Chinese diplomacy. However, in practice, Beijing’s attitude has been one of pro-Russian neutrality. China does not condone Russia’s behaviour – it abstained in the UN General Assembly votes – but it does support Russia’s justifications of the war, i.e. the claim that the root causes lie in ‘Cold War thinking’ and especially NATO enlargement. China does not use the term war, preferring euphemisms like issue, crisis or conflict. It rejects the use of sanctions. And it likes to apportion equal blame rather than call out Russian aggression, pleading for ‘all sides’ to find an end to the bloodshed…Through their statements and actions, Russia and China have made clear that they believe that great powers are entitled to a zone of influence in their respective neighbourhoods. We instead believe that the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act enshrine the right to of countries to make their own, sovereign choices. The joint Russia-China statement of 4 February is, at heart, a revisionist manifesto as I said at the Munich Security Conference on 20 February 2022. We see the war against Ukraine as a moment of truth where countries have to show their colours, but China feels it can avoid fateful choices. As things stand, it believes it gets a West that is focused on Ukraine and a weak Russia that is making China even more the senior partner with cheap oil and gas on offer, as Europe reduces its energy imports from Russia.”
“The EU side made clear that this is not feasible: some values are universal and core to how we approach the world. And the same is true for Ukraine. This is not a local quarrel between two countries who are equally to blame. And neither is it a return to the Cold War with two opposing ideological and economic blocs. No, this is a defining moment for whether we live in a world governed by rules or by force. The central question is whether we normalise the illegal use of force or not…We condemn Russian aggression against Ukraine and support that country’s sovereignty and democracy, not because we ‘follow the US blindly’, as China sometimes suggests, but because it is genuinely our own position. This was an important message for the Chinese leadership to hear. Discussions at the Summit were frank but also serene - a fact that perhaps illustrates that neither side had exaggerated expectations. The EU side called on China not just to support Ukrainian sovereignty and the need for a ceasefire in abstract terms, but to use its influence with Russia to help bring one about and to rule out any active military support to Russia. The Chinese side stuck to general statements of wishing to see peace and de-escalation, but avoiding specific commitments, on getting a ceasefire. It is also important that China reaffirms its opposition to the use of weapons of mass destruction in this conflict.”