Brexit.
Some people love it.
Others hate it.
Others voted for it,
but now they regrexit.
And China is happy to just let the chaos reign.
Welcome back to China Uncensored.
I’m Chris Chappell.
In 2016, British citizens voted
whether to remain in the European Union,
or to exit.
British exit.
Brexit.
By less than 4 percentage points,
Brits chose to Brexit.
It came as a surprise—
including to some people who voted for it.
It seems like big surprises
were a trend in politics that year.
But the unexpected outcome
forced the Prime Minister to resign.
And the new Prime Minister has had a hard
time
figuring out how to actually make Brexit happen,
because her proposals keep getting rejected.
But you know who loves all the chaos?
“Upset the established order,
and everything becomes chaos.
I’m an agent of chaos.”
I was going to say the Chinese Communist Party
loves the chaos.
But close enough.
Anyway, my favorite Chinese state-run media
the global times wants you to know that
the real problem isn’t whether people voted
for or against Brexit.
No, the real problem is democracy.
Good news, though:
China’s Belt and Road Initiative
can help Britain heal its Brexit wounds.
And that surprisingly transparent
Chinese state-run media article
helps us see exactly what the Communist Party
is trying to do in the wake of Brexit:
be the rebound relationship.
Ok, and also divide and conquer.
The European Council on Foreign Relations
seems to understand this.
They say “China is ready to take advantage
of
a divided Europe and weakened UK after Brexit.”
In this special issue called
“China and Brexit: What’s In It For Us?”
the analysts at the Council on Foreign Relations
say that “most of the losses from Brexit
will hit the European Union
or the United Kingdom, or both,
while China will get most of the gains.”
One of the ways the Chinese regime expects
to benefit
is that with Britain outside the EU,
China might be able negotiate
new trade deals directly with the UK.
“China is very keen to deal with EU nations
separately,
rather than as a bloc” one researcher told
CNN.
She says that China has the upper hand
in dealing with individual countries,
because of China’s much larger economy.
Europe’s trade advantage comes from acting
together.
See, the European Union,
as a united bloc,
has recently been pushing back against
the Chinese regime’s unfair practices.
These issues are spelled out in a rolling
document
called the EU’s Anti-Dumping,
Anti-Subsidy and Safeguard activities.
The European Union has gradually come to realize
that the vast majority of the unfair competition
facing Europe
comes from China.
For example,
China subsidizes steel production,
and then exports that steel at such low prices
that it shuts other competitors out of the
market.
This is called dumping.
So Europe put in anti-dumping measures.
And “of all the 120 anti-dumping measures
in force
at the end of 2018,”
the report says,
China was targeted with 85.
The next closest was Russia with just 9.
Which is to say,
China was nearly 10 times more successful
at dumping than Russia.
Yeah!
Can Putin do this?
But with Britain leaving the EU,
China hopes to negotiate a bilateral trade
agreement
directly with the UK.
That way,
it can flood the UK with the cheap Chinese
goods—
even when the rest of Europe rejects them.
Weirdly, the British government
does not see what’s coming.
Just a year after the British people
voted to leave the EU,
the British government hailed
a “New phase in Golden Era for UK-China
relations.”
British officials promised to “to build
a truly global Britain”
and that the “strong and growing” relationship
with China
would “deliver benefits for both countries.”
Promises were made.
And awkward photos were taken.
But...
“The ‘Golden Era’ of UK-China relations
has never materialized as it was envisioned,
and it probably never will.”
Why?
Because “Ultimately,
the U.K. does not really matter much to China.”
Even worse,
“As a trade partner,
Britain ranks below Australia.”
Britain ranks lower than Australia?!
But Britain practically created Australia.
That’s like saying Marmite
ranks lower than Vegemite,
when the truth is...
they’re both terrible.
Ok, my analogy fell apart at the end there.
The point is,
most of the Chinese regime’s vows
to increase imports of British goods
were just empty promises.
Like when NYU promised I’d have a successful
career,
if only I’d pay for a three-year Masters
Degree.
And now I’m deeply in debt—
because I chose to pursue
my dream of hosting a YouTube show
with an unprofitable perspective on China.
What’s that, Shelley?
Yes, as opposed to a lucrative career
in classical music composition!
Speaking of being in debt,
Chinese leaders have been further
trying to divide and conquer Europe
by going after the most delicious country
in the region:
Italy.
China promised to totally buy more Italian
goods.
And then they got Italy to be
the first Western European nation
to officially join the Belt and Road Initiative.
It’s going to be a win-win.
But only for China.
“So I don’t think it’s going to bring
more to Italy.
For China, it’s a huge win.
Because one it shows that a G7 country
is now a part of the Belt and Road Initiative,
which is a major political win.
Second it actually shows the weakening of
the US influence,
very clearly.
And third it shows a clear European fragmentation.”
So Italy’s move to join the Belt and Road
Initiative
is just another sign that the Chinese regime’s
divide and conquer strategy is working.
And later this month,
Chinese leaders will be visiting Croatia
for the annual 16+1 summit.
16+1 is a group of 16 Eastern European countries,
plus China.
And China wants to drive them away from the
European Union, too.
I mean, what leader of a small nation
that we can’t even place on a map
wouldn’t want to be friends with China?
So when it comes to the UK,
there may be disagreement whether
Brexit is good or bad for the country’s
future
with respect to Europe.
But it *is* clear that the Chinese regime
is taking full advantage of the opportunity.
The good news is,
even as the Chinese regime
tries to divide and conquer Europe,
one of its unlikeliest leaders is refusing
to surrender.
"We put ourselves in a situation
where Chinese investments have taken over
strategic infrastructure and network assets.
“The time for European naivete is over.”
Go get ’em, France!
What’s that Shelley?
France just signed a multibillion dollar deal
with China?
So what do you think about China leveraging
Brexit
to advance its strategy in Europe?
Leave your comments below.
And now it’s time for me to answer
a question from one of you—
a fan who support China Uncensored
with a dollar or more per episode,
by contributing through Patreon.
TexDude asks,
“Someone told me China made debt collection
illegal—
is that true?
 
What happens to a Chinese citizen
who doesn’t pay their debts?”
Good question, TexDude.
It’s not illegal to collect debt in China.
But sometimes it’s not that easy to collect,
since China’s rule of law is...not robust.
So Chinese people and companies use
*creative* methods to collect what’s owed.
From shaming people in front of their neighbors...
To using violence...
To even sending people infected with HIV
to sit in people’s homes to scare them until
they pay up.
And that’s not all.
“Over a dozen middle-aged women
in central China’s Henan province
have been sentenced up to 11 years in jail
for using violence and abuse to force people
to pay back their debts.”
And if you’re wondering why
the loan sharks hired middle-aged Chinese
women
instead of a few tough guys in tracksuits
named Joey,
clearly you haven’t met any Chinese aunties.
They’re the only thing I’m terrified of,
other than flesh-eating pandas.
So none of these thuggish debt collection
methods are good—
either for the debtor or debtee.
But there’s just not a very good civil court
system
to resolve these issues.
I guess that’s what happens in a country
ruled by the biggest thug of all:
The Chinese Communist Party.
Thanks for your question, TexDude.
And thank you for watching China Uncensored.
Once again, I’m Chris Chappell.
See you next time.
