EU sanctions on Chinese firms ‘will have little impact on Russia’s war in Ukraine’
- Proposals targeting Chinese companies express ‘some degree of hostility towards China without being effective’, think tank head says
- Stockholm International Peace Research Institute chief Dan Smith says it is ‘difficult for China to be taken completely seriously by Ukraine’ as a peacebroker
“I see this as being kind of an expression of some degree of hostility towards China, without being effective about it.”
He added that there was “currently no evidence that China has transferred complete weapon systems to Russia” and that if the EU and others could recognise that sanctions were an inefficient policy instrument, they might then start to work out how diplomacy, cooperation and pragmatic relations could help achieve their goals.
“But, of course, the question then is whether the Chinese leadership is open to discussion and persuasion,” he said.
The EU has reportedly asked for a blacklist of more than 20 companies, including three from mainland China and one from Hong Kong, for circumventing EU sanctions on Russia and contributing to Russia’s military development.