Status: 05.02.2023 05:18
In view of suspected Chinese spy balloons over the USA and Latin America, EPP Chairman Weber has called for a unified Western strategy towards Beijing. China is becoming “significantly more aggressive”.
After the sighting of suspected Chinese spy balloons over the US and Latin America, the leader of the European People’s Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, called on the western allies to work together to curb Chinese influence. “The new obvious espionage actions by China against the USA give cause for concern,” Weber told the newspapers of the Funke media group.
It is obvious that Beijing’s behavior towards Western countries is becoming significantly more aggressive. The free world must join forces for a “violent systemic competition with China,” said Weber, and called on the EU to close ranks with the United States and other allies. Weber emphasized that the EU states must recognize that they also have responsibilities in Asia and finally agree on a common China strategy.
Weber: great dependence on China
The EPP President pointed to the danger of becoming too dependent on China. “The EU states must not run blindly into further dependencies, as was the case with Russia,” he said. Any decision must “be thought through with the scenario of a potential Chinese attack on Taiwan”.
US warplanes yesterday shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon that was first sighted over the US state of Montana and then flew further east. The incident caused turmoil between Washington and Beijing. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken then canceled a trip to China planned for the coming days. China had previously asserted that it was a “civilian” balloon, especially for “meteorological purposes”. The balloon accidentally flew into US airspace. A second balloon later appeared over Latin America – also a Chinese spy balloon, according to the US Department of Defense.