Is China using ‘divide and rule’ tactics to gain influence in Europe?
The EU is becoming increasingly wary of Beijing’s attempts to drive a wedge through the bloc as ‘peripheral’ states line up to join
The EU is on alert for Chinese attempts to drive a wedge through the bloc as more states on the periphery line up to join the European fold, diplomatic observers and sources said.
Diplomatic observers said the European Union was wary of China’s growing investment in the Balkans, central and eastern European countries and poorer EU members – which Beijing sees as gateways into the more developed European market – as it threatened unity and solidarity.
“Otherwise the EU would be allowing itself to be divided against itself,” she said.
About a week earlier, Merkel stressed that China’s trade with countries in the western Balkans should not come with political strings attached.
China and Germany have a strong economic relationship, with bilateral trade rising to €186.6 billion (US$227.9 billion) last year from €170.2 billion in 2016. But Berlin is suspicious of China’s presence in Europe and has called for a “European response to safeguard our interests”.