Recently, the Chinese Embassy in France accused a French researcher of being a “hooligan” and a “spewer” for criticizing China’s policy towards Taiwan. Beijing‘s actions drew strong international criticism, and Chinese Ambassador Lu Shano was summoned to France.
The French Foreign Ministry said Monday that it had summoned Chinese Ambassador Lu Shanno to France because of “unacceptable” comments he made recently, allegedly humiliating and threatening French lawmakers and academics.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian tweeted Monday that “the Chinese embassy’s comments and actions against elected officials, researchers and European diplomats are unacceptable.
He went on to say that the French authorities would “firmly reiterate this message” when they summoned Chinese Ambassador Lu Shano.
The incident began when Chinese Ambassador Lu Shano sent a letter last month to Alain Richard, chairman of the French Senate’s Friends of Taiwan group, pressuring the group’s plans to visit Taiwan this summer, saying the move could harm Sino-French relations. A French Foreign Ministry spokesman responded last Wednesday (March 17) that he would not interfere with the lawmaker’s activities.
Last Thursday (March 18), Antoine Bondaz, a researcher at the French Foundation for Strategic Studies, praised the French Foreign Ministry’s statement on Twitter. A day later, the Chinese embassy retweeted Bondaz’s comments on its official Twitter account, responding in French with “petite frappe”, meaning “little rascal”.
After the Chinese embassy’s comments drew widespread criticism, the Chinese embassy spoke out again on Sunday (March 21) on its official website, accusing Pendarzi of being “a total ideological ‘spewer'” and saying it had blocked him on Twitter a year ago. The embassy blocked his messages.
The article also reads, “If there really are ‘war wolves,’ it’s because there are too many ‘mad dogs’ who are too aggressive, including some ‘mad dogs’ in academic and media trappings ‘ are tearing madly at China. Some people hope that China’s diplomacy would be better off as ‘lamb diplomacy’, holding back and resting on its laurels from foreign attacks. Such times are gone!”
This is not the first Time China’s ambassador to France, Lu Shano, has angered Paris. Last April, he was summoned by the French foreign minister for tweeting in defense of Beijing’s Epidemic prevention policies and criticizing the West’s ineffective prevention.
The academic Pendazi said he was surprised by the public attack on the Chinese ambassador, calling it “beneath the embassy’s status.
This is clearly counterproductive for them, but very revealing of their weaknesses,” he told VOA in an email. For years, the embassy has managed to avoid public debate on sensitive topics such as Taiwan.”
Pendarz’s research focuses on China’s foreign and security policy, as well as strategic issues in East Asia. He recently launched a research project on Taiwan, emphasizing the importance of making Taiwan the subject of study and public debate.
China has repeatedly reacted sharply to visits to Taiwan by foreign dignitaries. Last year, Beijing called Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil’s visit to Taiwan an “open provocation” and vowed to “pay the price.
If the embassy wants to participate in the public debate, of course it is welcome,” Pendarzi said. But insulting, slandering and launching a campaign of pressure is not constructive and will ultimately worsen bilateral relations between France and China.”
Smoke and mirrors
The attack on French academics by China has sparked strong criticism within France, with French media and lawmakers accusing Chinese officials of vulgarity and unabashedly pursuing “war-wolf diplomacy.”
French MEP Raphael Glucksmann urged French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday to “react quickly and forcefully” to the attack on Pendarzi.
Glucksmann’s tweet read, “France is not a victim.”
Pendarzi was also supported by numerous peers who accused China of infringing on global academic freedom.
Elvire Fabry, a senior researcher at the Jacques Delors Institute in Paris, told Voice of America, “This is not only inappropriate, but very offensive and a good example of China’s suppression of scholars, experts and any criticism. “
She also noted, “It shows that the Chinese government is somehow nervous and increasingly under pressure from foreign criticism.”
Indeed, under increasing pressure from international scrutiny, China is continuing to coerce international research institutions and scholars to remain silent on topics that Beijing deems sensitive, through means such as harassment and sanctions.
On Monday, China announced sanctions against 10 individuals and four entities in Europe, involving parliamentarians, think tanks and academics in Europe, including France. They had all been active voices on human rights issues in China.
Earlier this month, the Chinese government launched a civil lawsuit against a German academic. The scholar, Zheng Guoyen, has exposed the use of forced labor against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang on an international level.
Perry Link, a sinologist at the University of California, Riverside, argues that the international community needs to be alerted to the fact that China is becoming more “rigid and explicit” in its attacks on dissidents.
He told Voice of America, “People may ignore it [the attack] because it looks so childish, but that would be a mistake, because behind it lies aggressive, perhaps even violent, intent.”
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