At the upcoming 24th China-EU Summit, scheduled for December 7-8, European leaders are seeking to balance their policies regarding China and the United States. Gladden Pappin, President of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, offers a Hungarian perspective on Europe’s strategic autonomy and its relationships with major powers.
In a recent interview, Pappin emphasized the importance of Hungary’s engagement with both Western and Eastern partners. “People are often surprised when they see Hungary present at events on globalization because there’s such a misperception in the international media that Hungary is a country that’s somehow closed off or backward-looking,” he said. “Far from it. We are a very conservative country. We’re a traditional country that values family values. But we actually consider that to be the basis for our international exchange.”
Pappin highlighted Hungary’s strategic geographical location, which facilitates strong trade ties with both the West and the East. He underscored the necessity for Europe to pursue policies that serve its own interests rather than external pressures, particularly referencing the economic repercussions of sanctions on Russia.
“Unfortunately, there have been trends where Europe has pursued policies that are not actually beneficial to it,” Pappin observed. “From the Hungarian viewpoint, the sanctions on Russia have basically backfired. Energy prices go up through decoupling or through sanctions, then everyone is hurt. So, there’s been a steady de-industrialization in Germany; consumers have been facing higher energy prices, and we think it’s straightforward to say that’s bad for European strength and European competitiveness.”
Addressing recent developments, such as Italy’s consideration to withdraw from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Pappin stressed the importance of European strategic autonomy in balancing relations with China and the United States. “The trade relationship between China and Europe isn’t going away and it can’t go away,” he stated. “We have to reframe the debate and realize that European strategic interests include being able to pursue more of its own foreign policy.”
Pappin also spoke about Chinese President Xi Jinping’s global initiatives—the Global Development Initiative (GDI), the Global Security Initiative (GSI), and the Global Civilization Initiative (GCI). He views these initiatives as important and focused on economic development and peaceful exchange. “Hungary views China not as a threat, but as an opportunity,” he remarked. “We have to push back against this idea that there’s a zero-sum mentality in the world, that the benefit of one always comes at the expense of the other.”
In conclusion, Pappin called for European nations to recognize the mutual benefits of cooperation with China and to adopt policies that enhance their own strategic interests. “We have to find whatever the initiatives are—from the East or from the West—that are pointing in this more cooperative direction on a strong national basis and pursue those,” he advised.
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Europe needs strategic autonomy to balance ties with China and U.S.
cgtn.com
