IRELAND’S POLICY ON China has changed. 

Delivering an address earlier this week, Tánaiste Micheál Martin said that Ireland must be “realistic and clear-eyed” about China’s strategic goals and needs to be aware that the country has a different worldview compared to Western nations.

“China’s worldview is different from ours. Our interests and values differ. This reality will inevitably shape how we engage with one another,” Martin said.

In particular, Martin focused on the fact that Ireland and China have signed up to the UN Charter – the foundational treaty of the United Nations which codifies the major principles of international relations, from sovereign equality of States to the prohibition of the use of force in international relations.

“No country, however large or powerful, can ignore or disregard or sidestep this reality. Every country has an obligation to uphold the Charter,” he said.

However, he noted that Ireland will not be naïve in this regard when it came to China. 

“We do not intend to be silent when we see evidence of core principles being undermined,” Martin said.

There has been particular criticism of China’s human rights record on the country’s treatment of Uighur Muslims.

A report last year from the UN said that China’s arbitrary detention of the minority groups in Xinjiang may constitute crimes against humanity.

One academic with an expertise on China described the speech by Martin as “significant”, telling The Journal that its frank nature was uncommon for a top Irish political figure.

Dr Alexander Dukalskis, Associate Professor at the School of Politics & International Relations in UCD and the Director of UCD’s Centre for Asia-Pacific Research, said that it did mark a shift in Ireland’s policy on China.

“Europe and Ireland now are waking up to the reality that China’s behaviour is changing,” Dukalskis said.

We’re not in an era anymore where we can trust China as an unalloyed good.”

This re-examination of policy on China has been described as “de-risking”, rather than “decoupling”, which Dukalskis said that no serious leader has proposed. 

He added that Martin’s speech was a key example of Ireland looking towards “de-risking” its relationship with China.

This “de-risking” is essentially managing relationships with China in a different way, particularly around raising concerns in diplomatic discussion.

This leaves the door open for future cooperation, but also gives countries leeway to push back on China through diplomacy, whether that’s on human rights issues, on trade or on climate change.

Following Europe

The move shouldn’t be seen as too surprising though as Ireland follows Europe’s lead. 

In a stinging rebuke of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s regime in March, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that China was becoming “more repressive at home and more assertive abroad”.

She was also critical of the country’s continuing ‘no limits friendship’ with Russia, particularly as the Ukraine war continues.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also struck a similar tone in March, saying that China poses an “epoch-defining challenge to the type of international order we want to see, both in terms of security and values”, adding that the UK’s ”approach must evolve”.

Dukalskis said that there were three primary reasons as to why countries are reconsidering their approach to China, including the third term of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

He said that there had previously been a precedent within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for leadership turnover, and now it appeared that Xi would remain as the party’s President indefinitely.

“Xi overturned the applecart and is now a leader who can rule for as long as he wants,” Dukalskis said.

He said that Xi has now been able to “personalise” his rule, in a similar vein to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and that makes him more dangerous as a leader.

This, alongside a more assertive China on foreign policy in the South China Sea and on Taiwan, has lead to the EU, UK and US reexamining it’s ongoing relationship and moving towards the “de-risking” policy.

Dukalskis adds that the continuing close relationship between Russia and China is an issue due to the Ukraine war.

While China has painted itself as a neutral partner, Dukalskis says, they are continuing to lean towards Russia and the personal relationship between Xi and Putin remains close.

This follows a visit by the Chinese President to Moscow in March, where the two leaders hailed a “new era” of the relationship between the two countries.

Climate change

Despite the shift in relationship between European nations and China, there are still commitments to cooperate on issues such as climate change.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan said as much when he travelled to China as part of his St Patrick’s Day trip, telling The Journal on several occasions that it was important to work with the country as it was beginning to lead on renewable energy.

He said that China would be key for Ireland as important components for renewable energy projects would be manufactured in the country.

The Green Party leader said that during his engagement with the Chinese Minister for Ecology, Huang Runqiu, they spoke about “how we can cooperate on clean energy”, but that he did also raise issues around human rights.

This point was reiterated by Martin during his speech on Tuesday, who said that Ireland wanted to work “constructively” with China, particularly around addressing climate change while also dealing with human rights issues.

Overall, Dukalskis said that the speech by Martin recognised that there are risks when it comes to engaging with China.

Taiwan

The Tánaiste’s speech also referenced Taiwan, and the increasing pressure that China is putting on the island.

This pressure culminated last month with large drills and simulated strikes on Taiwan, following the Taiwanese President’s visit to US Speaker Kevin McCarthy in April.

Relationships between China and Taiwan have always been fractious.

This began in the immediate aftermath of the Chinese Civil War, with nationalist party – the Kuomintang – fleeing to the island in 1949, following the victory of the Chinese Communist Party.

The sharp decline in relations initially began in 2022, after then-US Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, where she meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

This culminated in a series of military drills that encircled Taiwan between 4 and 7 August 2022, which included ballistic missile launches and life fire exercises.

The One China policy is also significant, governing how countries can interact with Taiwan.

It means that countries adhering to the One China Policy recognise that the People’s Republic of China is the only sovereign Chinese state, meaning they cannot recognise Taiwan as a sovereign state.

Martin reiterated that Ireland still adhered to the One China Policy and would not have diplomatic ties with Taipei, but that “any attempt to change the status quo by force would not be acceptable”.

“We recognise the People’s Republic of China as the legal representative of China. That is not in question,” Marin said. 

“But this does not preclude the development of economic, cultural and people-to-people connections with Taiwan; nor the meaningful participation of Taiwan in relevant multilateral fora.”

However, Dukalskis said that there is a misconception around engagement with Taiwan, particularly with countries being concerned that any engagement will upset China.

He says that engaging with Taiwan is “totally normal” and that China engages with Taipei on a regular basis, but that they are undertaking a long-term strategy to close off the island’s diplomatic space.

In recent months, Taiwan has been left with just 13 countries who recognise it, following Honduras’ move to cut ties with the country in March.