The Big Picture: European Union Takes on China

The European Union and China sparred over geopolitics and economics on Monday when the heads of the bloc’s main institutions held video conferences with the Chinese premier and president. EU criticism of a Chinese plan to curb Hong Kong’s autonomy, allegations that China has spread disinformation about the coronavirus and frustration over Beijing’s curbs on foreign investors featured prominently in the talks. The atmosphere has become gloomier since the last EU-China summit in April 2019, when both sides pledged unity in the fight to uphold the multilateral order being challenged by U.S. President Donald Trump’s 'America First' agenda and the Europeans claimed progress in prodding the Chinese government to pursue fairer economic policies. While that meeting 14 months ago produced a much-hailed EU-China statement, no joint declaration emerged from Monday’s deliberations. Also, unlike last year, the Chinese side on Monday opted against a joint press conference with the EU. In this edition of The Big Picture we analyse the tensions between EU and China.

Anchor:- Frank Rausan Pereira
Producer:- Sagheer Ahmad
Guest Name:-
1. Mohan Kumar, Former Ambassador
2. Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, Foreign Editor, Hindustan Times
3. Prof. Gulshan Sachdeva, Centre for European Studies, JNU