Dr Sari Arho Havrén

Should Whitehall say ‘mega no’ to China’s ‘mega embassy’ in London? The Tangram | No 09.2025

🗣️ ‘The new embassy poses concrete security risks, and symbolically feeds into the war on narratives, amplifying the idea democracy is weak and has a propensity to sacrifice national security for economic gains,’ says @sariarhohavren.bsky.social, our International Fellow

#Tangram #ObservingChina

Even if nobody believes that the G2 order is emerging by agreement, Beijing must be pleased to be seen as an equal peer.

Bessent said that the US would counter China together with allies. Allies understand that countering China starts in Ukraine, not by appeasing Putin.

NATO shouldn't exist, China told MEPs | Euractiv The first EU-China meeting of parliamentarians since 2018 was marred by a dispute over the war in Ukraine

5/5 Source

www.euractiv.com/news/nato-sh...

MEP Marketka Gregorova:
“It is unbelievable that the president of China officially states that he is neutral in the conflict and that the territorial integrity of states should be respected, but then representatives of his Parliament come here to repeat Russian propaganda.” 4/

The meeting bw the EU Parliament’s 🇨🇳delegation and members of 🇨🇳NPC was the first in 7yrs, after Beijing’s decision earlier this year to lift sanctions on current and former MEPs.

But rather than a diplomatic thaw, the meeting was tense and testy, marked by the 🇨🇳side challenging NATO’s legitimacy.2/

Chinese lawmakers told members of the European Parliament that NATO shouldn’t exist, and spouted Russian talking points about the war in Ukraine at a rare meeting in Brussels on Thursday.
1/

We are pleased to announce that @sariarhohavren.bsky.social and Dr Jeffrey Ordaniel are joining us as International Fellows!

🔗 Read the full announcement here: www.geostrategy.org....

It is actually positive news that President Trump will not meet with the Chairman of the Communist Party, Xi Jinping.

During President Stubb’s visit to the White House, President Trump answered Finnish media’s questions and said the United States has no plans to withdraw its troops from Europe, but they may be redeployed.

Beijing kills two (or more) birds with one stone with the new export controls. For Europe, this means seriously slowing down Europe’s rearmament by hitting hard at European defence industries. Beijing was never a fan of the 5% GDP defence target.

Meanwhile, the EU views China as bad in helping Russia in its war efforts, but India as good in helping Russia, considering how desperate the EU is to close its trade deal w 🇮🇳 by the end of the year.

And fwiw, 🇨🇳 should be held responsible for being the biggest enabler of Russia’s war machine. 3/3

In August, Modi “reiterated India’s commitment to extend all possible support [for the earliest restoration of peace]” in Ukraine directly to Zelenskyy.

And yet, as many times before, Modi calls Putin—a war criminal—his friend. 2/3

Inconsistency in foreign affairs is the new normal.
Modi just congratulated Putin:
“Spoke w my friend President Putin and conveyed warm birthday greetings and best wishes for his good health and long life. Deeply appreciate his personal commitment to deepening India–Russia ties over the years.” 1/3

⤵️ tells us that treating China on the basis of not upsetting it undermines national security and judicial processes. The prosecution couldn't bring official evidence to prove China as an enemy because the government documents refer to it as a Geo-Strategic Challenge.

Europe hunts for chokepoints it can weaponise in a new age of economic warfare Bureaucrats look for leverage against coercion from Beijing and Washington but what would it take for Brussels to act?

“How can we move from a reactive attitude to a proactive attitude, one where we are not just trying to protect ourselves against weaknesses, but where we are also leveraging our strength?”

Superb reporting from @fbermingham.bsky.social once again 3/3

www.scmp.com/news/china/a...

“We have dependencies that others weaponise, but others are also dependent on us,” Sabine Weyand, the EU’s top trade official, said in the European Parliament last week.
2/

This is fundamentally necessary, and as a European, I am pleased that our policymakers are finally doing the bare minimum. This has been obvious for a decade (if not more, considering the number of industries we would have lost to China). 1/

Watching China in Europe—October 2025

So, to summarize: EV tariffs aren't working, the EU is now more dependent on China than ever, member states are cooling on a joint response, and the continent's two biggest economies are either paralyzed or lethargic. Everything is going great @noahbarkin.bsky.social.

www.gmfus.org/news/watchin...

⬇️ The US moves fast, the EU by design like a 🐌. Yet, the risks and dependencies are the same as in the US. The bloc launched its de-risking two and a half years ago; nothing considerable has happened.

Based on national legislation in most countries, such tankers could be stopped and inspected. The European-wide inertia is staggering.

OTD in 2006 journalist & activist Anna Politkovskaya was shot dead. Whoever is responsible for having her killed is still at large. And turns 73 today.

China threatened to retaliate against UK over foreign influence rules Exclusive: Chinese officials warned that targeting its security apparatus would negatively affect relations

⤵️ tells us that treating China on the basis of not upsetting it undermines national security and judicial processes. The prosecution couldn't bring official evidence to prove China as an enemy because the gov documents refer to it as a Geo-Strategic Challenge.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

That [self-driving tech] expansion is already underway. Reuters spoke to a dozen company executives who described how Chinese firms are using Europe as a beachhead for global expansion, mirroring the push with EVs. 2/2

China bets on Europe for self-driving tech expansion Blocked from the U.S. market, Chinese self-driving technology firms are accelerating their push into Europe, setting up headquarters, striking data deals, and road-testing - prompting alarm from local rivals over competition concerns.

Blocked from the U.S. market, Chinese self-driving technology firms are accelerating their push into Europe, setting up headquarters, striking data deals, and road-testing - prompting alarm from local rivals over competition concerns.1/2

Build the dependencies and they will kowtow. Beijing’s geoeconomic power on display in the 🇬🇧 — without 🇨🇳 doing anything, simply harvesting the benefits.

In her interview, Mrs Merkel gives the impression that Poland and the Baltic states prevented diplomacy with Moscow, and therefore, after her departure, Russia’s aggression broke out.

There’s also, if not entirely another, but a complementary explanation.
It was and is all about HER.

While Macron is right, with regulation or top-down wishes, Macron, France or the EU will not create equivalent, competing digital platforms.

Where will the US draw its defense line in East Asia? Uncertainty over commitments to South Korea and Taiwan raises new strategic questions

3/3 Source

Where will the US draw its defense line in East Asia?

asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/co...