The Head of EU Diplomacy Sees a Joint Russian Federation and the PRC Confrontation to the West

The rapprochement between Moscow and Beijing is based on rejecting democratic values, Josep Borrell said. The head of the EU diplomacy classified only China as important trading partners of the West, but not Russia. Russia and China are likely joining forces to confront the Western world. This is the point of view of the EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Josep Borrell expressed on Monday, March 29. But even in this case, the future geopolitical landscape of a multipolar world will not be simple, he added. The rapprochement between Russia and China is based primarily on rejecting democratic values and opposition to what both countries consider "interference" in their internal affairs, the head of EU diplomacy said. Borrell said Moscow and Beijing use similar language when talking about Western countries. Both countries want to strengthen economic independence from Western states, the European diplomat said. However, the PRC has a clear advantage over the Russian Federation, he added. Russia has never been an economic rival or a major trading partner of the West, while China is the second economy in the world and an important partner for both the EU and the United States, Borrell stressed. Expulsion of diplomats and EU sanctions for human rights violations Relations between Russia and the European Union have escalated in recent weeks. In early February, the Russian Foreign Ministry declared three employees of the diplomatic missions of Germany, Poland and Sweden persona non grata, accusing them of participating in protests in support of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The European Union responded with mirror measures. And Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the same month did not rule out the rupture of relations between Russia and the EU, if the Russian authorities again see sanctions that pose a threat to the country's economy. In March, the European Union, in connection with the criticism of US President Joe Biden against Putin, stressed the Russian president’s political responsibility for murdering in Russia people who criticized what was happening in the country. The same month, the EU Council imposed sanctions on 11 people and four organizations from Russia, China and several other countries for their involvement in gross violations of human rights.