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As Trump shakes world order, Western countries recalibrate approach to China
At Davos, world leaders take veiled swipes at the US, while China frames itself as defender of the post-war system, analysts say
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At the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this week, world leaders warned of an increasingly fractured global order and took veiled swipes at the United States.
But they held back on directly criticising China, which experts said signalled a recalibration in their approach to Beijing as US President Donald Trump’s political unpredictability left allies on edge.
Recent moves by the US president have been widely seen as assaults on the global order, including the strikes on Venezuela and the abduction of its former leader, Nicolas Maduro, and his wife.
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Trump’s push to take over Greenland and his tariff threats against European allies also triggered a major diplomatic crisis and drew fierce condemnation from Washington’s closest partners.
Meanwhile, China has sought to maintain its position as a defender of the international order, condemning the US operation in Venezuela as a clear violation of international law and the basic norms of global engagement.
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In his latest conversation with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on Brazil to jointly “uphold the central role of the United Nations and international justice” in the face of international instability.
Cui Hongjian, head of European Union studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University, said the US actions in Venezuela and Greenland had sent shock waves and projected “strong imperialist tendencies” to its allies, most of which were small or medium-sized countries that feared being exploited.
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