Something peculiar is occurring in international relations. Chinese President Xi Jinping travelled to Moscow shortly after his reelection as state president to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. The United States complained that the Chinese President was too busy to accept President Joe Biden’s call. At the same time, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is welcoming foreign leaders from the “alliance of democracies” with open arms.
Recent visitors include Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, French President Emmanuel Macron, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen; a reception for EU Commissioner for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell is scheduled for April 13-15; a sizeable German delegation led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited in March; and so on.
Beijing has rejected all attempts by the undisputed leader of this alliance, the United States, to establish contact. Not only are the Chinese avoiding the interaction between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, but also all other interactions: diplomatic, military, financial, and commercial.
However, relations between the US and China are regarded as the most crucial in the modern world, with trade between the two nations reaching a record $690.59 billion last year. What exactly is going on?
China has many reasons to snub the US: Taiwan, trade sanctions, human rights, spy balloon, disputes over the ownership of islands and water areas in the South China Sea, the creation of QUAD and AUKUS blocs with the general militarisation of the Asia-Pacific region, and so on. But all of this is, of course, detail.
On a macro level, China’s behaviour naturally reflects the transition to a dollar-free world economy and US-free world politics. This transition is already well underway. It is crystal clear that the US friends in the “alliance of democracies” conduct their current pilgrimages to Beijing not in any way in response to an order or suggestion from Washington but because it is necessary for them and possible for them to do so.
This is the campaign between the “alliance of democracies” and “the forces of autocracy” that Joe Biden announced in 2021. Implementing the “all on one” strategy against Russia during the Ukraine conflict did not produce the desired results. The allies were convinced that the United States’ superiority and Russia’s weakness would lead to Russia’s demise. The financial and economic costs and political risks have become unacceptable for many US allies. Even if China only morally supports Russia, which is becoming increasingly obvious, this represents a shift in the existing order of geopolitical power.
The allies of the US are also worried about the prolongation of the Ukraine conflict. The limit of Western aid to the Kyiv regime in the “as much as needed” format, with all the concomitant bonuses, is already weighing upon them.
The White House administration lacks the capacity and justification to prohibit or restrict these initiatives of its allies, mainly when one examines the common democratic cause to convince the PRC to “correct its behaviour” in the present circumstance.
US cannot solve all the problems
In general, the United States and Europe have grown closer since the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict. However, cooperation with Washington cannot address the EU’s problems, and the United States has yet to show Europe’s interests from Europe’s perspective. The EU must consider whether the world will progress towards peaceful development or a new cold war with its bloc confrontation and ideological conflict.
Since the start of the Ukrainian conflict, Europe has been at an impasse. Now that China has released a political settlement plan and offered a way out, European leaders want to see if it can find a real solution, especially in light of the rapidly deteriorating relations between the EU and Russia. China still maintains good relations with Russia. On this issue, there is room for cooperation between the two parties. One visit cannot address all problems, but it can be a turning point that stabilises the situation and halts the deterioration of relationships.
Macron Calls for European Independence
French President Emmanuel Macron travelled to China to persuade the Chinese government to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin to see reason. Macron criticised basing nuclear weapons in other countries on Chinese soil, citing Russia’s placement of nuclear weapons in Belarus. Dmitry Medvedev, the mischievous Russian vice-chairman of the Security Council, stated that the criticism is directed at the United States, which has positioned tactical nuclear bombs in Europe. Macron also said that Europe should reduce its reliance on the United States and avoid conflict between China and the United States over Taiwan. He said Europe’s “biggest risk” is that it “gets into crises that are not its own, preventing it from building its strategic autonomy.” Previously, Macron asserted that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine revealed Europe’s susceptibility to external threats and reliance on the United States.
The great game is on
With the Saudi-Iran pact and Petro Yuan, China is also pulling out the world’s largest oil producer, Saudi Arabia, from the US sphere of influence. Additionally, the country has amassed a sufficient diplomatic advantage over the United States in Africa, West and Central Asia, and Latin America.