By: Jianli Yang – June 18, 2021
Just before the 47th G7 summit convened in England, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China hastily passed its new law on countering foreign sanctions, seeking to achieve a deterrent effect prior to the G7 meeting to dissuade member states from imposing new sanctions against China under pressure from the U.S.
Despite not being a member of the Group of Seven, China still sought to “participate” from behind the scenes. Before departing for Europe, President Joe Biden stated that how to deal with China would top the agenda. Prior to this, in response to concerns about forced labor in Xinjiang and the suppression of human rights in Hong Kong, several G7 and European Union countries imposed sanctions on certain Chinese companies and individuals, after which Beijing imposed counter-sanctions on the countries in question.
If G7 member states agreed to impose new sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals, they would undoubtedly be an “upgraded version” of prior sanctions. Doing so would demonstrate the shared resolve of the seven most powerful countries in the West to resist totalitarian China. Beijing was wary of this, and thus deemed it necessary to take preventive actions. Consequently, on the eve of the G7 summit, the Chinese Communist Party passed the Law on Countering Foreign Sanctions (also known as the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law). The law is intended to influence countries that are not as strong as the United States and the United Kingdom (such as Germany, Japan and other states that are less willing to stand up against China) to consider the cost of Chinese countermeasures and choose not to go along with U.S. sanctions…. [Continue Reading]
Source: https://www.newsweek.com/chinas-countering-foreign-sanctions-law-shows-its-wolf-warrior-diplomacy-opinion-1601665