Editor’s Note: Frida Ghitis, a former CNN producer and correspondent, is a world affairs columnist. She is a weekly opinion contributor to CNN, a contributing columnist to The Washington Post and a columnist for World Politics Review. The views expressed in this commentary are her own. View more opinion on CNN.
CNN
—
A few days after French President Emmanuel Macron stunned and angered France’s allies by handing Chinese leader Xi Jinping an unnecessary and potentially important victory, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva started his own trip to Beijing — another in a series of exchanges that shows China’s increasing global diplomatic clout.
Lula had best tread carefully. Macron’s China visit — and the fallout from his comments about Europe not following America’s lead on Taiwan — is an object lesson in the need for world leaders to practice more self-discipline when dealing with Beijing.
Like most of China’s diplomacy, the country paints itself as champion of global peace, even as it launches menacing military maneuvers. Xi calls for peace in Ukraine, even presenting a vague, mostly meaningless proposal. But he has done nothing to actually help end the war, or even do as little as condemn Russia’s onslaught.
Elsewhere, China already scored a major diplomatic victory brokering reconciliation between Iran and Saudi Arabia earlier this month. But in the background, according to a report from Politico, it is holding advanced talks with Russia and Iran to provide Tehran with the materials it needs to boost its ballistic missiles program. That would be not only a violation of United Nations sanctions, but a lifeline to resupply Russia’s arsenal used to bomb Ukraine.
Fueled by an economic muscle that has already made it the top trading partner to more than half the world’s nations, China is pressing its diplomatic power and displaying its military capabilities.
In the process, China is receiving help from unexpected sources.
Before Lula landed Wednesday, French diplomats were busy trying to reassure European allies who had moved from disbelief to fury about statements that Macron had made during his trip; statements that at times seemed to align him closer to…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at CNN.com – RSS Channel – HP Hero…