Can China get the US out of the way of better ties with Europe? - SCMP

... Frans-Paul van der Putten, a China expert based in the Netherlands, said there was limited room for manoeuvre because of vulnerabilities within the US-China-Europe strategic triangle. 

He said the EU was geographically restrained and had conflicting economic and security interests, and so had little to offer China. Meanwhile, Beijing could not meet the EU's demand to abandon its strategic partnership with Russia, which would weaken its own geopolitical position with the US. 

Van der Putten, author of the newly published China Resurrected: A Modern Geopolitical History, noted that the recent Nato summit in The Hague revealed the extent to which Washington could extract major concessions from European capitals – potentially influencing EU positions on China as well.

Beyond US pressure, he warned that Beijing should not underestimate Brussels' deep frustration and grievances over China's trade practices and support for Russia at the expense of its ties with Europe.

"Transatlantic friction does not remove the core problems that exist in EU-China relations, including China's state aid policies and close relations with Russia," he said. ...

Article by Shi Jiangtao. Click here to go to the article on the site of South China Morning Post.