China’s military parade should ring alarm bells in Europe
From left: Russian president Vladimir Putin, Chinese president Xi Jinping, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif arrive at a military parade to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Japan's Second World War surrender held in front of Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, China, on Wednesday. Picture: Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP
The Chinese government’s celebration marking the 80th anniversary of its victory over Imperial Japan and the accompanying military parade was, even by the standards of a superpower, a jaw-dropping event.
Firstly, the military display in Beijing packed a hell of a punch. From hypersonic missiles (technology in which China leads the US), to enormous underwater drones shaped like torpedoes and laser defence systems, this was a watershed moment — military analysts around the world could not but be impressed.
How has China moved so fast to accumulate such state of the art military hardware? Chinese president Xi Jinping has made no secret of his country’s desire to the become the preeminent military power in the world within a few decades; he has invested the capital in an attempt to get there.
As well as boasting world-class universities and scientific institutions, China is also a global leader when it comes to industrial espionage.
In July, an American defense contractor admitted to handing over sensitive missile technology designs to Chinese intelligence. Last year, in Berlin, three German nationals were charged with passing on sensitive data on ship propulsions systems and laser technology to Chinese intelligence. These are only a few instances in a decades-long spy campaign orchestrated by the intelligence services of China’s mnistry of state security and the People’s Liberation Army.
Beijing has established a range of think tanks and economic friendship initiatives under its United Front Work Department. The aim is often the same: To expedite the transfer of intellectual property to give China a military and economic edge.
During his visit to Dublin in 2012, as well as attending a State banquet at Dublin Castle and a performance of , then vice president Xi oversaw the signing of a raft of agreements designed to accelerate cooperation between Chinese research institutions with Irish universities — in areas such as engineering and computer science.
In recent years, Irish academics have been involved in projects aimed at developing China’s space capabilities. Although the People’s Liberation Army plays a central role in directing and controlling China’s space programme, there was no sustained discussion between the government and the university sector about whether such cooperation was a security risk for Ireland and the EU.
This week, China’s president stood beside two of the world’s most murderous dictators: Russian president Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. A leader with such friends self-evidently has no principles and respects no law; the only way to limit Xi’s accumulation of power will not be to appeal to international law or values but by demonstrating economic and military power as a means of deterrence.
There is no doubt that Xi would have invaded Taiwan by now if he believed the military and political cost was acceptable. For now, he is still wary that the US could respond, and make China pay dearly.
Any pretence that China could be a reliable supporter of a basic principle of the UN Charter — the inviolability of the sovereignty of UN member states unless a UN Security Council resolution deems that a state is a threat to international peace and security — fell away in 2022.
Xi backed Putin’s invasion of Ukraine because he wanted to make the US pay in Europe so that Washington could do less in the Pacific. All Beijing’s past protests over US-led wars in Kosovo and Iraq, since these were not initially authorised by the UN Security Council, were exposed as naked hypocrisy.
And yet, Xi presents himself as the UN’s most committed supporter. At a press conference on August 30 with UN secretary general António Guterres, Xi told journalists that “multilateralism, solidarity, and co-operation are the right answer to global challenge”. He urged all countries “to treat each as equals [and] co-exist in peace”.
Four days later, he stood beside his Russian and North Korean guests to watch the victory parade. Irony does not prosper in Tiananmen Square.
At a time of Donald Trump-induced disarray and hubris, Xi is tempting the world to believe that China can fill the US-shaped void in what remains of the international order. Such an ambition can be quickly dismissed when seen through the prism of Ukraine, but also when it comes to Beijing’s conduct towards the EU over trade.
Last year, World Trade Organization members initiated 198 investigations against China for alleged dumping or illegal subsidies. China’s highly protectionist economy has imposed mounting barriers for European companies that operate in the country. There are increased regulations relating to foreign firms’ handling of data, along with a constant flow of state support aimed at displacing foreign investors.
To counter attempts by the EU to push back against China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine and its industrial espionage, China has embarked on an influence operations — or "wolf diplomacy" — campaign, to try to shift public opinion in Europe in its favour.
At a time when the EU is deciding whether it will properly regulate US technology companies that are spreading disinformation and undermining democratic institutions, Brussels is also facing rising challenges when it comes to its relationship with Beijing.
Ultimately no help is coming. The EU will have to stand on its own, and fight back, if European values are to endure.
- Edward Burke is a lecturer at the Centre for War Studies at University College Dublin
