The EU will sanction Chinese officials for human rights violations

The sanctions, which include a travel ban and a freeze on assets, are being imposed because of Beijing’s actions in Xinjiang, according to which the US and some European capitals have labeled genocide against the Uighur Muslim minority.

The decision still needs a formal signing, which is expected to happen when foreign ministers meet later in March. Chinese officials are included on a wider list of alleged human rights violators in Russia, North Korea and Africa.

The names of the officials will be released only after a formal decision has been made.

The decision is the latest sign that, despite maintaining open channels with Beijing and pressure for deeper economic ties, the EU is ready to confront China on human rights and other issues. The bloc seeks to maintain a delicate – and often divisive – balance in its relationship with a country it calls its competitor, partner and systemic rival.

In the past year, the EU has pressured senior Chinese officials, including President Xi Jinping, on human rights violations in Xinjiang, the country’s treatment of rights activists and journalists, and the tightening of Beijing in Hong Kong. This has drawn the attention of Chinese officials, with Mr Xi attacking EU leaders for their own human rights issues, and other officials urging Europe not to interfere in internal affairs.

At the same time, however, the EU and China have taken major steps to deepen their economic ties. In December, the two sides concluded seven years of negotiations on an investment agreement, which raised concerns from the future Biden administration and some parliamentarians in Brussels.

At the time of the investment agreement, which has yet to be ratified, EU officials insisted that the agreement would not prevent them from putting pressure on issues such as human rights and Hong Kong, and stressed the new human rights sanctions imposed in December last year. to do this.

There was no immediate comment on the Chinese mission’s sanctions agreement in Brussels.

Earlier this month, the EU first used human rights sanctions, which are similar to the US Magnitsky Act against those involved in the imprisonment of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny. However, the EU is already planning a wider round of sanctions against officials around the world for human rights violations.

However, it took three days of talks between EU ambassadors in Brussels this week to overcome differences over the list of sanctions targets. The government of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, which has warm political and economic ties with Beijing, has led opposition to the new sanctions, but the 27 governments reached an agreement on Thursday afternoon.

After the Chinese Communist Party used deadly force against Beijing protesters in 1989, the EU imposed a series of economic sanctions and embargoes on China, but they long since disappeared as ties with Beijing flourished in the 1990s and 2000 The EU maintains an arms embargo on China.

In recent years, as Mr Xi tightened control in China, tensions have risen between the EU and Beijing, with struggles over trade and human rights issues, as well as tensions over what the EU sees as Chinese misinformation during the crisis. coronavirus. The EU has begun discussing China’s challenges with Washington, although it insists on following its own independent line with Beijing.

“There is a real dynamic going on. Our Chinese friends are reaping what they have sown in Europe, ”said an EU diplomat.

In July last year, the EU approved some modest measures on China’s repression in Hong Kong, restricting extradition agreements with the island. The bloc is currently weighing additional measures.

However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in particular, pushed the region to maintain a close commitment with China. German exports to China have multiplied, and Ms Merkel has strongly supported the speedy conclusion of the investment agreement.

The United States has imposed a series of sanctions against Chinese officials and companies in Xinjiang, amid international condemnation of large internment camps for Uighur citizens, which include allegations of rights violations and forced sterilization. Shortly before leaving office, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described China’s actions in the northwestern province as genocide.

China has denied any ill-treatment of its Muslim minority, and officials have denied any mass internment of Uighurs.

Write to Laurence Norman at [email protected]