As the 24th China-EU Summit approaches on December 7, Gladden Pappin, president of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, has shared his insights on the future of EU-China relations and the significance of China’s global initiatives.
In a recent interview, Pappin emphasized the importance of President Xi Jinping’s three global initiatives—the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative. \”These are important initiatives that are modeled on a base of economic development,\” he said. \”Any initiatives oriented toward economic development and peaceful exchange are good ones.\”
Pappin highlighted Hungary’s perspective on China, stating that the country views China not as a threat but as an opportunity. \”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,\” he remarked.
Reflecting on his experience growing up in the United States, Pappin noted, \”I know why that mentality exists. It is because for a while, the U.S. was the only player, so it feels that any development elsewhere is a threat to it. But it seems that China has a different view of this—that there can be shared development.\”
He acknowledged the challenges faced in different parts of the world, particularly in Europe, where some countries have withdrawn from the Belt and Road Initiative. \”We have to eventually realize that people can pull out of economic arrangements, but they do so only at their own cost. Costs go up; there’s an opportunity cost, and industrial development goes down,\” Pappin explained.
Looking ahead, Pappin advocated for greater cooperation between East and West. \”We have to find whatever initiatives are from the East and from the West that are pointing in this more cooperative direction on a strong national basis and pursue those,\” he concluded.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
