The original article in German is here.
- Victor Gao, ex-interpreter to politician Deng Xiaoping and now Beijing's mouthpiece, promotes China's line in the West.
- In the midst of economic problems, China is trying to win back Europe as a partner - on the condition that it does not criticize Beijing.
Where other Chinese experts remain silent because the new anti-espionage law forces them to be cautious, Victor Gao [once Deng Xiaoping's interpreter, now vice president of a government-affiliated think tank and figurehead for China's propaganda] talks. And how. Whether CNN, BBC or al-Jazeera - everyone gets it from him, the party line, eloquently packaged and charmingly served.
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His current mission: to woo Europe, while relations with the West are crumbling under the weight of Hong Kong, Taiwan, Xinjiang, corona and closing ranks with Russia.
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Victor Gao demands: "Wake up from your American nightmare." And immediately delivers the Chinese offer: less morality, more market. China as a "resource", not a rival.
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But behind the smile lurks geopolitical calculation.
After all, NATO has long been seen as the enemy, and Western democracies are described in China's state media as decadent, refugee-ridden orders. At the same time, Gao preaches closing ranks in interviews - as long as Europe refrains from any criticism of Beijing.
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Victor Gao, who translated Deng's words into the international arena in the 1980s, embodies China's transformation: from an aspiring reformist state to an autocratically controlled superpower under Xi Jinping.
What used to be openness is now demarcation - and yet: economic hardship is forcing China back towards rapprochement.
With the economic downturn in its own country, youth unemployment, the real estate crisis, demographic decline and mountains of debt, it now wants Europe back as a partner. Or at least as a market.
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Gao describes Europe as a continent on the brink of collapse: "You have no more money at all," he says. China, on the other hand? Ready to help. With experience, technology and growth. A kind of development aid - made in China.
But the price is high: no criticism. No geopolitics. No questions asked.
Human rights? Tibet? Xinjiang? Are elegantly omitted. Anyone who raises them is either a "gangster" financed by the USA or a naΓ―ve idealist. Gao prefers to sell the high-speed train network, the next 6G expansion and the bubbling growth figures.
Problems? "Of course there are," he says - and immediately changes the subject.
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Victor Gao says that Europe is too small to be an adversary.
But perhaps this is precisely Europe's underestimated strength: not wanting to dominate, but to mediate between the extremes - without selling out.
Because Gao is right about one thing: the world as we know it is changing rapidly. But whether China's charm offensive is more than just a tactical smile will be measured by whether Beijing wants genuine partnership - or just a Europe that shuts up and pays up.
There's still a lot of beef with Europe in both Latin America and Africa. Even if you ignore colonialism, Europe's cold war era track record in those areas is... Not good to say the least.
What's the guarantee that Europe will actually bring peace and stability and not just install far-right dictators when it's convenient for them?
What guarantee did the Finns have that the Swedes won't just conquer them again? The Baltics that they won't just, again, be ground up between the millstones of larger powers?
Europe is stock-full of colonised people. Don't expect French or German or Portuguese or Spanish ambassadors, expect Latvians.
Unfortunately, there are no guarantees in this world. We do not even have the guarantee here in the EU that we will preserve our democratic systems, that we will not succumb to the far-right, to the neo-Nazis. In Germany alone, in recent polls, the AfD has grown and is now ahead in voting intentions, and the new Coalition government has not even taken office yet. Even seeing all the nonsense and chaos that the Trump administration has sown in America in just a few months, this has not discouraged German voters from a party of the same political line supported and financed by the same group of people. We cannot guarantee that we will not install far-right governments in our potential new allies, we cannot guarantee that they will not be destabilised, exploited or even worse. We cannot even guarantee that we will not do the same to ourselves.
Preventing this is an eternal battle that requires a certain leap of faith from everyone. This idea, for our own good, must become a fundamental part of our culture! We must unite the Democratic Forces of our countries and theirs in an eternal struggle against tyranny. We just cannot fall into the error of thinking that there are guarantees, this is a false sense of security that allows these far-right movements to grow. You may have even won great battles, but the war always continues. We can at least try to support their development and foster prosperity in good faith, not let them fall behind. Struggle, struggle, struggle ad aeternum!
I mean, if Europe cannot guarantee the peace and stability of their allies or themselves, why should other countries trust them over China for example?
China is already an autocracy, which always brings greater stability (the regime cannot drastically change with the result of the next elections), but it also increases the chances of abuse of power. For some it makes little difference, for others it doesn't. For the undecided, the one who offers more in return will win.
Europe needs to create new industries and develop existing ones, while distancing itself from the world's major powers. But we won't be able to manufacture here at affordable prices, so we could look for alternatives like the countries of North Africa, for example. I think China simply won't be as interested in developing a relationship in this way, since they already produce a lot of goods by themselves. In short, we need to be as generous as possible with our new allies.