China’s EU ambassador lashes out at European Commission President for her fiery remarks

Asia-Pacific, Europe, News April 2, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

Beijing’s representative in Brussels recorded his disappointment over the European Commission chief’s fiery speech against China. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen heavily criticized China in her latest speech on March 30, 2023.

China’s ambassador to the European Commission Fu Cong gave his official reaction to Ursula von der Leyen’s speech saying that there was “no coherence” in her fiery remarks against China. Fu Cong said that he was “a bit disappointed”.

The Chinese ambassador said that the “speech contained a lot of misrepresentations and misinterpretations of Chinese policies and Chinese positions. And I would say that whoever wrote that speech for President von der Leyen does not really understand China or deliberately distorted Chinese position.”

In her 40-minute-long speech, Ursula von der Leyen painted a scorching picture of China as she heavily criticized Beijing’s role in the deteriorating state of EU-China relations. The European Commission president said that China and the EU are “more distant and more difficult” than ever before. She accused Beijing of trumping the free-trade order, bullying small-sized countries, violating human rights, toughening its military standing, and ramping up disinformation campaigns.

Her fierce approach towards China attained a lot of attention from international media while surprising many observers who are used to of hearing moderate views about China from EU officials. “These escalatory actions point to a China that is becoming more repressive at home and more assertive abroad,” von der Leyen said.

Notably one of the hosts of the event, where von der Leyen spoke, was the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), which is already under Chinese sanctions for being biased against Beijing.

*^{President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen with President of France Emmanuel Macron. (Image Credit: Ludovic Marin/AFP)}*

Despite her several accusations against Beijing, von der Leyen made it clear that the EU cannot afford to cut relations with China at this point and suggested the EU leaders must be cautious in designing their China strategy. “Our relations are not black or white, and our response cannot be either,” she said, calling for diplomatic stability and open communication lines.

Fu Cong said that von der Leyen’s approach towards China reflects a “deep-seated ambivalence” and exposes von der Leyen’s fear of being seen as too soft towards China, particularly by her in front of the U.S. and other western allies.

The European Commission President’s fiery remarks against China come only a week before is set to travel to China on an official trip along with French President Emmanuel Macron. “We do hope that in her visit to China and her dialogue with the Chinese leaders, she will be able to understand China better,” Fu Cong said.