Europe: divided over AUKUS and China

The AUKUS deterrence strategy towards China contrasts with the more cooperative EU Indo-Pacific strategy. In Europe, this can be traced to the fact that the UK and France/Germany support different geopolitical world views. As expressed by French President Macron, ‘Is it in our interest to accelerate [a crisis] on Taiwan? No. The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the US [UK] agenda…’.  European (and possibly Western) cohesion vis à vis China is difficult, to say the least. It requires that geographical and geo-economic heterogeneities, together with Chinese wedging, are overcome. This can only happen, if at all, through significant “solidarity reward” to the expensive partner, writes Hans Mouritzen’s in this peer reviewed article in the Canadian ‘International Journal’.