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In this edition of Europa Hoy, France 24’s program in Spanish on European news, we analyze the role of China in the world and its relations with the European Union. To deepen the relationship with the Asian giant, we spoke with MEPs Javi López, from the Social Democratic group, and Jordi Cañas, from the Renovar Europa group.
China is a complicated partner for the European Union. Two years ago, the community bloc positioned the Asian giant as a systemic rival, although it later initiated an investment pact – at the end of 2020 – with this nation, an agreement that the European Parliament later said it will not ratify.
The European Union recently approved sanctions against senior officials in the Xinjiang region for the degrading treatment and violation of human rights of the Uighur minority, a Muslim population that, according to independent organizations, suffers systematic persecution in the Asian nation.
These sanctions caused tensions between Brussels and Beijing, something that had not happened since the Tiananmen Square demonstrations in 1989.
In addition, European countries do not stop worrying about the allies that China continues to win globally. The most recent in Asia, with the Taliban now running Afghanistan, but not least, the influence that China maintains in eastern Europe and in Latin American territories.
The coronavirus pandemic also put the European Union on alert, after revealing that there is a huge dependence on China not only on medical supplies but on technology. For this reason, Brussels is also trying to reverse the situation, betting more on a European production.
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