EU leaders urged to be tough on China if it backs Russia in Ukraine

EU leaders are being urged to tell China it will face sanctions if it offers military aid to Russia for the war in Ukraine, amid concerns about a deepening authoritarian alliance that threatens the rules-based international order.

Senior EU and Chinese leaders are expected to hold discussions on Friday at a video summit that is likely to be dominated by the war.

European experts say that as long as MEPs such as Bütikofer remain on Chinese sanctions lists, the CAI will not be revived.

The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated European efforts to reduce its dependence on Chinese goods and supply chains. Casting a further chill is a diplomatic dispute between Lithuania and China, after the Baltic nation announced it was establishing mutual diplomatic posts with Taiwan.

Chinese state media have consistently blamed the US and Nato for pushing Moscow into starting the war in Ukraine, but Michael Reiterer, a former EU diplomat and currently a distinguished professor at Brussels School of Governance, said it was Putin who brought Nato back to life.