China watches as Ukraine war makes U.S., EU and Japan show unity
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin attend a meeting during the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) summit in Brasilia on November 14, 2019.
Pavel Golovkin | Afp | Getty Images
BEIJING — Since taking office last year, President Joe Biden has pursued a strategy of restoring relationships with allies to put pressure on Beijing.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine nearly two weeks ago showed what those allies can do.
For China, the speed and severity with which the U.S. and its allies sanctioned Russia is a warning sign that could guide future economic and foreign policy.
Chinese officials have increased efforts to buttress their country’s self-reliance since President Donald Trump sanctioned telecommunications giant Huawei and slapped tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of Chinese goods.
But Trump did all that singlehandedly — while simultaneously damaging ties with Europe and provoking uncertainty among U.S. allies in Asia.
“Given the success that the U.S. has had in coordinating the financial sanctions and export controls not just with Europe but also with Japan, a key player in tech value chains — this is extremely alarming for China,” said Reva Goujon, senior manager for the China corporate advisory team at Rhodium Group.
“This is a very multilateral moment,” Goujon said. “At a high level, you would think China would benefit from [the U.S.] having a big distraction in Europe, but actually [this] only accentuates those policy debates over critical exposure and vulnerabilities to Chinese supply chains.”
From Germany to Japan, many countries have joined the U.S. in freezing the assets of Russian oligarchs, restricting access of Russia’s biggest banks to the global financial system, and cutting off Russia from critical technology.
China condemns ‘unilateral’ sanctions
China’s Foreign Ministry has repeatedly said it “opposes all illegal unilateral sanctions.” It has not elaborated on how the sanctions against Russia, which have been imposed by many countries, could be considered unilateral.
When asked about an “alliance of Western nations” pushing Russia out of the SWIFT banking network, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said last week that “China does not agree with resolving issues with sanctions, still less unilateral sanctions that lack the basis of international law,” according to an English-language press conference transcript.
Later in the week, spokesperson Wang reiterated that position in response to a question about whether Western sanctions on trade with Russia would affect China.
Sanctions “only create serious difficulties to the economy and livelihood of relevant countries and further intensify division and confrontation,” he said.
China’s Europe balance
Escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China in the last few years had already accelerated Beijing’s efforts to firm up ties with Europe. The Ukraine war threatens all that.
China’s “balancing act” of trying to quietly support…
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