Excerpt

April 2023, Paper: "As the conflict in Ukraine continues to escalate, the European Union (EU) faces a difficult balancing act in its relationships with China and Russia. Despite tensions and disagreements between the EU and China in recent years, two key European leaders — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron — have expressed their commitment to maintaining a dialogue with China, regardless of U.S.-China relations and despite the reinforcement of the transatlantic alliance in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and U.S. diplomatic and military support for Ukraine. The future direction of Europe’s geopolitical role hangs in the balance at a critical moment."