‘China is not Europe’: EU move to tie Chinese relations to Ukraine war is unfair, Fu Cong says

Fu Cong says new sanctions on Russia that are expected to target Chinese companies lack evidence
Envoy warns of ‘strong responses’ if sanctions go ahead

China-EU relations

Kawala Xie

Published: 6:01pm, 29 May 2023

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It is “unfair” and “not sensible” for European lawmakers to link the war in Ukraine with China-EU relations, China’s ambassador to the European Union said, warning of retaliation if the bloc targeted Chinese companies in new Russia sanctions.

In an interview with the British magazine the New Statesman republished on the website of the Chinese mission to the European Union on Sunday, Fu Cong said it was “unrealistic” to expect China to adopt the same position as the EU.

The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said earlier this month that China-EU relations would be “critically affected” if Beijing did not press Russia to withdraw from Ukraine.

“We understand the importance that the EU attaches to the Ukrainian crisis. But frankly speaking, I do not find it sensible to link China’s position on the Ukrainian crisis with our bilateral relationship between China and the EU. I don’t think that is fair to China,” he said in the interview.

“China is not Europe, China’s interests are different from those of Europe and China maintains good relations with both Russia and Ukraine. China’s position is understandable.”

Fu was interviewed as the EU prepared a new round of sanctions against Russia that will target Chinese firms for the first time, while Beijing’s peace efforts – most recently led by special envoy Li Hui – have been criticised in the West as “pro-Russia”.

The new sanctions, reportedly to be passed as early as next week, are expected to restrict exports to at least seven Chinese companies accused of circumventing existing EU sanctions by selling dual-use items they imported from Europe to Russia.

The companies include four already blacklisted by the United States – mainland-based 3HC Semiconductors and King-Pai Technology, and Hong Kong-based Sinno Electronics and Sigma Technology – as well as Asia Pacific Links, Tordan Industry and Alpha Trading Investments in Hong Kong, according to the Financial Times.

In the interview, Fu slammed the sanctions as lacking evidence and warned of “strong responses” if they went ahead.

“We are willing to solve problems in a cooperative manner,” Fu said. “We negotiated with the EU and asked it to provide evidence. However, the EU side stated that it has no conclusive evidence to prove that the relevant companies have re-exported items imported from the EU to Russia.”

He also defended China’s neutral position on Ukraine and reaffirmed its role as a peacemaker.

“We have our own diplomatic style and I think at this stage, actually, a simple condemnation does not solve the problem. It may reduce your space for diplomacy – if all countries take the side of one country, then who is going to come out as a mediator for peace? But it does not mean that we are condoning any action specifically in this conflict,” he said.

Asked about who started the Ukraine war, Fu said “the historians” could decide. He also avoided a direct answer when asked if Crimea was a part of Ukraine, saying only that China stood for the sovereignty of “all countries and he hoped the issue could be resolved through peaceful negotiations.

Fu also criticised European countries that called for peace while also waiting for conditions to be more “mature”. He urged an immediate ceasefire through peace talks, the same message touted by Li during his Europe tour.

Li finished a two-week long peace mission over the weekend following meetings with Russian officials in Moscow – his last stop after visiting Ukraine, Poland, France, Brussels and Germany, promoting China’s 12-point proposal to find a solution for Ukraine.

Medvedev sees Ukraine war lasting decades, as US general doubts Russian victory

But Li’s efforts appeared to run into a deadlock in Europe. He was told by some Western officials that Russia’s withdrawal was non-negotiable before any freezing of the conflict, while he reportedly proposed the opposite – an immediate ceasefire that would leave Russia in possession of its new regions, according to the Wall Street Journal.

However, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba rejected the Wall Street Journal report on Friday, saying he had contacted relevant European officials in the countries that Li visited, and “none of them” confirmed that Li had proposed recognising the Russian-occupied territories.

As calls grow to “de-risk” economic relations with China, Li was also said to have told his European counterparts to uphold their strategic autonomy and see China as an “economic alternative” to the US, amid suggestions that Beijing may be seeking to drive a wedge between Brussels and Washington.

In the interview, Fu demanded that Europe clarify its de-risk approach, stressing that China would oppose the strategy if it meant excluding China from the global supply chain over areas involving key technologies.

02:46

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“If the EU side has concerns about dependency on China for certain things, the best way is to really talk to each other … dependency is not dangerous. What is dangerous is to weaponise the dependency,” he said.

As the US pressures the EU to help curb China’s development in critical sectors, the 27-member bloc has stepped up measures to tackle Chinese economic activities that could be deemed security dangers.

Fu took aim at the US for influencing the bloc for decisions on banning Huawei, limiting semiconductor exports to China and freezing the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), the landmark trade pact between China and the EU that stalled after both sides implemented sanctions on each other over human rights issues in Xinjiang.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen signalled in April that the pact could be shelved permanently as China became more “assertive”.

Fu urged the bloc not to allow the CAI to become “politicalised”, saying some perceptions in the EU towards China were based on “ideology”.

China, Russia hold security talks in Moscow amid tensions with the West

“We do not deny that there are differences between us in terms of ideology and specific issues related to human rights. But our view is that our common interests far outweigh our differences. So we should not allow our differences to define our relationship,” he said.

“Unfortunately, nowadays, there is this narrative about so-called democracy versus autocracy.

“I think this narrative is both misleading and, I would say, even dangerous.”

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