Over the past year, views on China have hardened across the German political spectrum. With Merkel due to leave office next year and a change of coalition likely, there is a growing sense that a more hawkish stance from Berlin has become inevitable. "Once Merkel is gone, I think you will see a quick shift, possibly a drastic one," said a Bundestag official who is politically aligned with her conservatives.
 
A senior figure in German industry agreed, predicting that the momentum behind a more hawkish line would be difficult to stop, despite pressure from the business lobby to keep relations harmonious: “The trend is in one direction and that’s toward a harder line,” he said.

The chancellor entered 2020 determined to show that Beijing could be a partner for Europe, rather than just a competitor and systemic rival, as the European Commission described it last year.
 
But Beijing has refused to play along. Instead, China has become more provocative as the COVID-19 crisis has unfolded, using its new security powers to crack down aggressively on pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong over the past week. Merkel’s hopes of sealing an EU-China investment treaty and forging separate agreements on climate policy and African development are fading. The chancellor’s summit with Xi and EU leaders, initially planned for mid-September in the eastern city of Leipzig, has been indefinitely postponed.

Not only is China refusing to play ball with Merkel, so are members of her own Cabinet and a broad coalition within the Bundestag that includes members of her own Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by foreign affairs committee Chairman Norbert Röttgen, as well as lawmakers from her coalition partner, the Social Democrats (SPD), and the Green party. Over the weekend, a senior official in the SPD-led foreign ministry penned a strongly worded commentary on China in Der Spiegel magazine, which read like a thinly veiled denunciation of Merkel’s approach.
 
This cross-party grouping is increasingly confident that it can deal another blow to Merkel's China policy this year by thwarting her plans to give Huawei a role in Germany’s 5G network.

Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, who has been given responsibility for drafting 5G security legislation, has signaled to Huawei’s opponents that he does not want to fight with them. According to a senior official in the ministry, that means the draft law his ministry is likely to present to parliament in the fall will set the security bar too high for Huawei to clear.

The Greens support what they call an “ethical foreign policy” with human rights at its center and — because their signature issue is the fight against climate change — their stance toward Beijing is unlikely to be influenced by the China-dependent German car industry to the same extent that Merkel’s has.

The Greens support what they call an “ethical foreign policy” with human rights at its center and — because their signature issue is the fight against climate change — their stance toward Beijing is unlikely to be influenced by the China-dependent German car industry to the same extent that Merkel’s has.

Top 5 most polluting countries
China (30%)  
United States (15%)  
India (7%)
Russia (5%)
Japan (4%)

Saloperie de gaz de schiste mais ca te dérange pas que la Chine soit le plus gros pollueur de la planète ?

EU and China discuss trade and economic relations

The European Union and China held today their 8th High-Level Trade and Economic Dialogue (HED). Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis, accompanied by Commissioner for Trade Phil Hogan, held the meeting via videoconference with Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He accompanied by several Vice-Ministers.

Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis said: “The current crisis gives us no other option but to work hand in hand with our global partners, including China. By pulling together we can recover more quickly economically, and make progress on areas of mutual interest such as trade and investment relations. However, we also need to address sticking points such as reciprocity in the way our companies are treated. We will need to make further progress on these and other issues ahead of the next leaders' summit in the autumn.”

Commissioner Hogan said: “EU-China bilateral and trade relations must be based on the key principles of reciprocity and level-playing field based on clear and predictable rules. Today I have called upon China to engage in serious reform of the multilateral system and its rulebook and to remove the existing barriers impeding access to the Chinese market of EU exporters of goods and services as well as of European investors. Such an approach by China would show a level of responsibility which reflects its economic and trade importance.”

The EU registered the significant progress made on level playing field related issues, while highlighting that equally significant work that still remains to be done on key issues such as market access and sustainable development. On market access, the EU reiterated its request for improvements of China's offer in the telecommunication and computer sectors, health, biotechnology and new energy vehicles. On sustainable development, the EU insisted upon the political importance of meaningful commitments in this area and the need for China to increase its ambition and engagement.

With regards to market access, the EU recalled its request to China to authorise Member States' exports of agricultural products currently awaiting export authorisation, as it is the case in the beef and poultry sector. The EU also outlined its concerns about new restrictions introduced on food exports, on the ground of controlling the coronavirus pandemic, leading to an increased number of unjustified inspections, controls and requests for certificates on EU exports of agricultural products.

Australia's Morrison says US-China war no longer inconceivable

Australia last month said it would boost defence spending by 40 percent over the next 10 years, buying long-range military equipment that will be focused on the Indo-Pacific region, where both Beijing and Canberra are competing for influence.

Morrison said building an Indo-Pacific alliance with like-minded nations will be a "critical priority" for his government, warning the pace of militarisation in the region was unprecedented.

Australia's relations with China, its most important trading partner, has plummeted to new lows in part because of Canberra's calls for an independent investigation into the origins of and responses to the coronavirus.

Australia is moving one step closer to the edge of the cliff. On Thursday, Australia's newly appointed High Commissioner to India Barry O'Farrell indicated the federal government's support for India in its border disputes with China by saying "Australia opposes any attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo."

South China Sea dispute: Australia says Beijing's claims have no legal basis

China’s Huawei, ZTE set to be shut out of India’s 5G trials over national security concerns

La nouvelle année a été marquée par les inquiétudes liées à la faiblesse des résultats commerciaux. La guerre commerciale entre les États-Unis et la Chine aggravant l’effet de ralentissement de l’économie chinoise à long terme, mais les exportations australiennes vers la Chine ont augmenté de 29% par rapport à 2017.
 
Les principaux exportateurs vers la Chine, notamment les États-Unis, l’Allemagne et le Japon, ont vu leurs ventes chuter tandis que d’autres pays asiatiques, où les entreprises font partie de chaînes de valeur avec des entreprises chinoises, ressentent également les effets d’une demande chinoise plus faible.
 
Ryan Felsman, économiste principal chez Commsec, a déclaré que la Chine absorbait désormais un record de 34,1% des exportations australiennes. Au plus fort des relations de l’Australie avec le Japon dans les années 80, sa part dans nos exportations atteignait 28%.

China shows support for Belarusian leader amid criticism from EU

As the political instability in Belarus continues to worsen, China is the only major power that supports its long-time president, Alexander Lukashenko.

In a telephone call to Lukashenko on Monday, Xi offered congratulations “on behalf of the Chinese government, the Chinese people, and in my own name”, Xinhua reported.
Xi said he was ready to work with Lukashenko to “jointly push forward China-Belarus comprehensive strategic partnership and expand mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in various fields”.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the bloc would pay close attention to China’s handling of what they considered to be “a European affair”.
“It would send a very troubling message to EU member states – who are united in the response on Belarus – if China continues to lend Lukashenko support,” he said.

 
China's Ministry of Commerce announced on Tuesday that it had launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of wine from Australia, a development many fear signals a downward spiral in the bilateral relationship.
 
Since it is easy to draw a line between China's move and what Australian politicians have said and done recently, some may speculate the anti-dumping probe is a warning or retaliation. Yet it should be pointed out that at such a delicate moment - when continuous political provocations from the Australian side have led to uncertainty in bilateral relations - any measures taken to defend China's legitimate rights and interests can easily be misinterpreted as a counterattack.