China’s hit job against Lithuania
The EU has “no good cards to play” as China “ups the ante in its economic hit job against Lithuania”, say Stuart Lau and Barbara Moens in Politico. The showdown began in May when Vilnius pulled out of the 17+1 initiative between China and 17 Central and Eastern European countries on the grounds that it was divisive. Tensions “escalated” when Taipei and Vilnius set up diplomatic offices in each other’s countries. A displeased Beijing, which regards self-ruled Taiwan as its territory, then moved to “make an example of Vilnius” by barring the imports of Lithuanian goods. Owing to global supply chains (and, reportedly, pressure from Beijing) , the spat is affecting other countries, says Reuters. Germany says around a dozen firms are affected, including car parts maker, Continental.
Finally, on 15 December Lithuania withdrew its diplomats from Beijing and locked its embassy, says The Economist. Although it insists the closure is temporary, this is the “worst crisis in relations between China and a European state since 1981”. Lithuania has a “long history” of standing up to “bullying foreigners, including Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union”. China’s eagerness to “use instruments of commerce and diplomatic intercourse as weapons, even as Chinese leaders talk up multilateralism and free trade”, underscores its role as a “disruptor of the rulesbased order”. Australia, Canada, Japan and South Korea have all faced unacknowledged economic sanctions for provoking Beijing.
Europeans and the US are defending Lithuania, with EU officials warning that China’s apparent trade ban may be in breach of World Trade Organisation obligations. The EU has also announced new instruments to retaliate against economic coercion. However, “free-traders within the bloc doubt whether such tools can work” and such solidarity “may prove fleeting”. The truth is, concludes Politico, there isn’t “much ammunition available”.