Yellow Peril Annoys Europe

**tomcat** · 08-05-2020, 07:10 AM

How China Is Losing Europe

With a clumsy and ugly disinformation campaign, China is trying to project “soft power” as the U.S. loses its cachet. That’s backfiring.
By Andreas Kluth
May 7, 2020, 12:00 PM GMT+7
Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

From China, with love. Photographer: Joe Klamar/AFP via Getty Images Andreas Kluth is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. He was previously editor in chief of Handelsblatt Global and a writer for the Economist. He's the author of "Hannibal and Me."

If 2019 was the year when Europeans began having serious doubts about Beijing’s geopolitical intentions, 2020 may go down in history as the moment they turned against China in defiance. That’s not because they blame the Chinese for originating Covid-19, as U.S. President Donald Trump and his secretary of state seem obsessed with doing. It’s because China, by trying to capitalize on the pandemic with a stunningly unsophisticated propaganda campaign, inadvertently showed Europeans its cynicism.

The motivation behind the Chinese propaganda is obvious enough: With the U.S. flailing under Trump, Beijing sees an opening to finally rise to the status of a second superpower. The biggest geopolitical prize in this contest is the European Union, formerly anchored securely in the transatlantic camp but in recent years increasingly nervous about Trump and open to Chinese trade, investment and influence.

As the pandemic’s epicenter moved from Wuhan to European countries such as Italy and Spain, China initially had the right idea. Starting in mid-March, it sent Europe big shipments of face masks and other medical equipment, adorned with Chinese flags. Some of this gear turned out to be shoddy, but people saw it as a nice gesture. China could have stopped at “mask diplomacy” and come out ahead.

It didn’t. Bejing’s minions instead began spreading disinformation, apparently intended to paint the EU’s democracies as effete and authoritarian China as comparatively strong. In France, the Chinese embassy posted on its website a wild accusation that French retirement homes leave old people to die. In Italy, Chinese sock puppets disseminated tales that the coronavirus had in fact originated in Europe, or doctored video clips to show Romans playing the Chinese anthem in gratitude. In Germany, Chinese diplomats (unsuccessfully) urged government officials to heap public praise on China.

In response, the EU’s diplomatic service assembled a report on the disinformation campaigns being waged by China and that other usual suspect, Russia. China promptly made a bad situation worse, leaning on the publication’s authors to tone it down. At this, members of the European Parliament took even more umbrage and demanded assurances that the EU will not self-censor under Chinese pressure.
In some European countries, these tensions aren’t new. Even before the coronavirus, Swedes were outraged by the Chinese ambassador’s thinly veiled threats against their press, and some politicians want to throw him out of the country. But other EU members have willingly put up with the heavy-handed China treatment.

They include several southern and eastern EU countries — such as Croatia and Hungary — which have signed up for China’s two big geopolitical efforts. One is a Chinese-led forum called 17+1, in which Beijing (the 1) tries to organize economic cooperation with 17 European countries. The other is the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure project that skeptics see as a Chinese attempt to turn Asian, African and European countries into economic vassals.

Even before the pandemic, Europeans were becoming disappointed by the one-sided nature of these “partnerships,” both economically and politically. Take the rather symbolic tiff between Prague and Beijing, for example, which agreed to be sister cities, with Prague accepting the One-China policy (which denies that Taiwan is a country) and Beijing delivering, among other things, some cute pandas to the Prague zoo. But the pandas never came. As other conflicts escalated between the two partners, Beijing backed out in a huff. The mayor of Prague, fed up, found a different sister city in Taipei, Taiwan.

China’s largest trading partner in Europe, Germany, has also put up its guard after several Chinese companies took stakes in German technology firms ranging from a robot maker to a power company. Last year, Berlin tightened the rules on such sensitive acquisitions. The EU followed suit, with a common investment-screening approach taking effect this year. Meant to preserve Europe’s technological and industrial autonomy, it implicitly aims to keep China at bay.

The weather vane showing the overall direction of the EU’s China policy will be this year’s rollout of fifth-generation telecoms networks, or 5G. Even with the Trump administration haranguing Europeans to get them to boycott the largest Chinese equipment maker, Huawei Technologies Co., the EU’s members have been split or undecided on whether to allow the company to bid for contracts. In Germany, the mood seems to be tilting against Huawei. Even the U.K., now outside the EU, may reconsider its decision to let Huawei participate in its 5G plans.

For all of this, Beijing only has itself to blame. Somehow, Chinese officials have managed to offend Europeans across the continent who usually agree on nothing. At the beginning of the year, the calendar for 2020 was filled with Sino-European summits celebrating ever deeper ties. Instead, the pandemic is likely to be the occasion for Europeans to begin emancipating themselves from a bad relationship.

Even on the assumption that the real target of China’s infantile propaganda campaign is its domestic audience or the Chinese diaspora, this “diplomacy” can’t exactly pass as brilliant strategy. If it reflects the quality of Beijing’s statecraft, fears of China’s rise may have been greatly exaggerated.

**Saint Willy** · 08-05-2020, 07:18 AM

Originally Posted by tomcat

Even on the assumption that the real target of China’s infantile propaganda campaign is its domestic audience or the Chinese diaspora, this “diplomacy” can’t exactly pass as brilliant strategy. If it reflects the quality of Beijing’s statecraft, fears of China’s rise may have been greatly exaggerated.

Interesting summary. It remains to be seen how it will play out. I feel it's a 50/50 equation right now, sometimes China gets it right, sometimes misses horribly.

**tomcat** · 08-05-2020, 07:25 AM

Originally Posted by TheRealKW

Interesting summary. It remains to be seen how it will play out. I feel it's a 50/50 equation right now, sometimes China gets it right, sometimes misses horribly.

...in the column under "misses horribly", I think we can list the Belt and Road economic near-slavery imposed in South Asia and Africa (abetted by naive local politicians), the heavy-handed "South China Sea" island grab and its puerile stubbornness concerning Taiwan...

**kmart** · 08-05-2020, 08:22 AM

^Abetted by the IMF and World Bank, mostly. https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2019/04/25/sp042619-stronger-frameworks-in-the-new-phase-of-belt-and-road

**panama hat** · 08-05-2020, 08:24 AM

The Chinese diaspora in Europe isn't the same as in SEAsia and the US/Aus/UK/NZ (who are mainly still the same generation or the previous to have come from China) . . . they see themselves as more European and less inclined to believe the primitive Communist-style propaganda that was used so ineffectually by the Soviet Union and the East Bloc.

People know what hid/hides behind the veneer of a worker's paradise state - oppression, gulags, corruption etc...

China can't win the Charm Battle . . . they simply don't know how

**harrybarracuda** · 08-05-2020, 05:01 PM

The chinkies have been getting their grubby mitts into a lot of national and international institutions in an effort to whitewash their cursed "Belt and Owed", and they've bribed a lot of tin pot dictators to get precious support in the UN.

They aren't really playing by international rules, and that's why it wouldn't be particularly improper for anyone to send a few carrier groups around the South China Sea to send a big "Fuck Off chinky wankers" message.

The countries they are walking all over there are too weak and have too corrupt leaderships to defend themselves properly.

**NamPikToot** · 08-05-2020, 05:07 PM

Well TC, the EU has in the last week bowed to Chinkie pressure and toned down their report of the Wuhan Flu, pathetic is the word and so much for the power of the 27, more a whimper.

**tomcat** · 08-05-2020, 05:36 PM

Originally Posted by NamPikToot

Well TC, the EU has in the last week bowed to Chinkie pressure and toned down their report of the Wuhan Flu, pathetic is the word and so much for the power of the 27, more a whimper.

...that's a common result in democracies when trying to please everyone...the Chinese will know well how to use wedge issues to damage fragile European unity. The tribes of Europe haven't really evolved much in modern times...authoritarian China needs select only a Serbia, a Hungary or a needy Romania to advance its geopolitical maneuvering...

**NamPikToot** · 08-05-2020, 05:58 PM

^ true, they've been currying favour in many poorer countries, they practically own chunks of Africa - it only costs them a few Mil to buy a dictator or a lot less for influential official to support their project/agenda look at the WHO. The West is just standing by watching.

**Klondyke** · 08-05-2020, 07:09 PM

Originally Posted by tomcat

authoritarian China needs select only a Serbia, a Hungary or a needy Romania to advance its geopolitical maneuvering...

Is this from your own research, or did you read it somewhere?

**sabang** · 08-05-2020, 07:59 PM

The article sounds like wishful thinking to me.

**Cujo** · 08-05-2020, 09:45 PM

Prague, fed up, found a different sister city in Taipei, Taiwan.

Fucking brilliant.

**Troy** · 08-05-2020, 09:51 PM

Originally Posted by NamPikToot

^ true, they've been currying favour in many poorer countries, they practically own chunks of Africa - it only costs them a few Mil to buy a dictator or a lot less for influential official to support their project/agenda look at the WHO. The West is just standing by watching.

They just have to follow, and clean up the mess left by, the CIA.

**NamPikToot** · 08-05-2020, 09:55 PM

And they will gladly, showering their friends with their gratitude. I think things will come to a head in this decade one way or another; Govt debt is where it'll start.

**harrybarracuda** · 08-05-2020, 10:33 PM

Originally Posted by Troy

They just have to follow, and clean up the mess left by, the CIA.

They rarely clean things up, their normal modus operandus is to pillage what they can and fuck off to the next target, like the swarm of locusts they are.

**sabang** · 09-05-2020, 06:25 AM

I gotta great idea. How about Europe takes all of the Somali, Nigerian and Libyan "emigrants", and here in Oz we will take the viets & chinee? Sounds like a win win deal to me.

**panama hat** · 09-05-2020, 06:41 AM

Originally Posted by sabang

I gotta great idea. How about Europe takes all of the Somali, Nigerian and Libyan "emigrants", and here in Oz we will take the viets & chinee? Sounds like a win win deal to me

Why? Because there's no anti-Asian sentiment in Oz?

**sabang** · 09-05-2020, 07:14 AM

No, because Viet's & Chinee make great immigrants, Somalians et al explicitly not so.

**tomcat** · 09-05-2020, 07:31 AM

Originally Posted by sabang

No, because Viet's & Chinee make great immigrants, Somalians et al explicitly not so.

...how's that?...oh, skin color, got it...

**Cujo** · 09-05-2020, 08:05 AM

Originally Posted by tomcat

...how's that?...oh, skin color, got it...

Skin colour aside Somalis have a bad attitude and cause trouble wherever they are.

**tomcat** · 09-05-2020, 08:10 AM

Originally Posted by Cujo

Skin colour aside Somalis have a bad attitude and cause trouble wherever they are.

..I wonder how many were included in your research...

**sabang** · 09-05-2020, 08:11 AM

Nope, just look at educational attainment & uni scores, socio economic levels, welfare dependency & crime statistics. They are colorblind- which is predictably why our governments do not want you to see them broken down ethnographically.

Many injuns got dark skin, and they aren't such bad immigrants either.

I wonder how many were included in your research...

Orrstralia. That'll do me.

**kmart** · 09-05-2020, 08:21 AM

Originally Posted by Cujo

Skin colour aside Somalis have a bad attitude and cause trouble wherever they are.

They make great pirates. rrrrrrrrrrrrrr

**Saint Willy** · 09-05-2020, 09:20 AM

Originally Posted by Troy

They just have to follow, and clean up the mess left by, the CIA.

Love random, commas.

**panama hat** · 09-05-2020, 09:38 AM

Originally Posted by sabang

because Viet's & Chinee make great immigrant

So, who runs the drug trade in Oz? The Viets and Chinese or Somalis? Here in NZ? Chinese who sell to the Maori gangs . . . not the Somalis.

Originally Posted by tomcat

...how's that?...oh, skin color, got it...

You forgot the religious aspect of it

Originally Posted by TheRealKW

Love random, commas.

You're, clearly in the, wrong thread, to say, that?

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