Various Tibetan media outlets are reporting that Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy since December 1,2019, recently raised the issue of Tibet and human rights with Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi during a “Strategic Dialogue” between the two powers held in preparation for the forthcoming EU-China summit.
The dialogue was conducted via video-link as a result of the ongoing restrictions that the coronavirus pandemic has imposed on diplomatic activity.
In a statement to the media after the meeting, Borrell said he had spoken about the issue of human rights in Tibet and Xinjiang and that he had “raised a number of individual cases.” He did not elaborate further and was not asked specifically about these issues in the press conference which followed.
Responding to a general question from the press about whether China and the EU were on good terms, Borrell answered, “We are not on a confrontational line; we just want to have realistic relationships to defend our values and our interests.” He also spoke about the Chinese potentially having a role to play in stabilising the tumultuous situation in Afghanistan; the importance of Chinese involvement in a multilateral world and said he believed China clearly had global ambitions “but they do not have military ambitions and they do not want to use force and participate in military conflicts.”
Wang Yi stated: “With cooperation and consensus always greater than competition and differences, China and EU are long-term, comprehensive strategic partners.” Chinese state media reported that the meetings resulted in agreements to “develop closer ties on a range of issues.”
The EU-China summit is due to take place via video conference on June 22.
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