CHINA’S RAPIDLY GROWING GLOBAL RELATIONSHIPS
- Mike Lyons
- 2 minutes ago
- 7 min read
China’s World
China doesn’t care if you are Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu or an atheist and it doesn’t care if your government is democratic, theocratic or dictatorial. If you want to do business, China is more than happy to partner with you. China doesn’t interfere with your elections, overthrow or stage coups against your government, kidnap your political leaders or sanction your country to the point of starving the population. It does not operate hundreds of military bases around the world and does not invade other countries. Life in China can be wonderful!
CHINA is the most transactional and ideology-free country in the world, but DO NOT CROSS ITS RED LINES, namely - The return of Taiwan, the legitimacy of Communist Party rule, and the Unity of the Chinese nation. Everything else is negotiable.
Ai Weiwei is a contemporary, internationally recognised Chinese artist and activist. He has been openly critical of the Chinese government and was arrested in 2011 for “economic crimes” and detained for 81 days without charge. The government confiscated his passport but it was returned in 2015 after which he lived in Portugal, Germany and the United Kingdom. When he returned to Beijing on a visit, after a decade he described his visit as “smooth and pleasant” and he shared his belief that China was in an “upward phase” while Western society was in decline adding that, “The West no longer had the moral authority to criticise China on human rights”.
BBC China correspondent, Laura Bicker remarked, “As someone who lives and works here, you see a China where, if you want to live within certain parameters, you have a nice life. You have high-speed trains which can transport you from one side of the country to the other. It is safe - I could go for a run at three in the morning. People are friendly and, to all intents and purposes it is a lovely place to live, but if you step on those red lines, it becomes a problem”.[i]
China – US Relations
President Trump held a wide-ranging phone call with Xi Jinping on 4 February. Xi called on the US to build mutual trust and he expressed the hope of working with Trump to steer China-US relations forward, adding that if the two countries worked in the spirit of “equality, respect, and mutual benefit” they could find solutions to address each other’s concerns. In turn, Trump said there would be many positive results achieved over the next three years of his Presidency in his dealings with China, adding that his personal relationship with President Xi was “extremely good”.[ii]
China’s Military Prowess
During its military parade in September 2025, Beijing rolled out its arsenal which included Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), hypersonic gliders and “killer” missiles which rumbled through Tiananmen Square. Its DF-5C (a silo-based giant) was said to have the ability to hit any target in the world, with a range of up to 20,000 km. However, China’s short and medium-range ballistic missiles are most likely for use in a regional fight, specially over Taiwan or in the South and East China Seas.
China is also expanding its hypersonic anti-ship arsenal and is building a missile force designed not only to guarantee a second strike in a nuclear war but also to deny access to its coastal zones, to threaten adversaries and to keep rivals guessing. Beijing is no longer playing catch up in missile technology. Instead, it is setting the pace.[iii]
China’s Growing Relationships
Ukraine
In Ukraine, there are multi-day blackouts and buyers are rushing to secure supplies from China of goods such as electric vehicles, batteries and solar panels, desperate for any power source they can get. China remains Ukraine’s biggest single trading partner, indicating the pragmatic nature of Ukraine’s relations with Beijing, despite the “no-limits” partnership declared by Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin. According to Beijing, China exported more than US$5 billion in goods to Ukraine in 2025 although Kyiv’s Customs bureau reports imports of US$19 billion from China since Chinese products imported to Ukraine from Poland are also counted by Kyiv as Chinese imports.[iv]
ASEAN
China aims to deepen its trade with South-east Asia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has already become its largest export market with exports to the bloc reaching $322.5 billion in the first half of 2025. China’s new 134 km Pinglu waterway will connect China’s landlocked Guangxi Province directly to the Gulf of Tonkin. The Canal is expected to open this year and will shorten the shipping route from Nanning, Guangxi’s capital, by 560 km and reduce transport costs by hundreds of millions of dollars each year. This may prove to be only a “warm-up act” with provincial governments in Hunan and Guangxi pushing for approval of the “Xianggui Canal”, a 300-kilometre waterway extending the Pinglu canal northward to connect with the Yangtze and Pearl River systems. The combined network will stretch for 3,200km, creating an inland maritime highway from central China to Southeast Asia.[v]
Hungary
China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi recently met with the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban with both sides vowing to deepen all-round cooperation. Orban described the Chinese nation as “great”, saying China’s leadership had a strategic vision. Orban noted that thanks to China, the Hungary – Serbia Railway would soon begin operation. These developments will boost Hungary’s economic growth while improving the livelihood of its people. Orban also reaffirmed Hungary’s commitment to the one-China policy.[vi]
Africa
In June 2025, China announced the elimination of tariffs on 98-100% of imports from 53 African countries which maintain diplomatic relations with Beijing. Kenya and China signed a bilateral trade agreement which will grant 98.2% zero-duty market access for goods from Kenya, with particular emphasis on agricultural exports, which are the backbone of Kenya’s economy. The deal balances deepening economic ties with Kenya’s eastern partners including both China and Russia, while maintaining relationships with the US and the UK. According to a Kenyan economist, while countries like the US use trade tariffs as a tool to punish African countries, China uses tariffs to foster relationships.[vii]
Europe
China has overtaken the US as Germany’s biggest trading partner and, according to a German report, its trade deficit with China has reached a record level of €89.3 billion. Since 2015, China has been the largest supplier of goods to Germany, underscoring the depth of their economic ties. China’s exports to Germany rose by 8.8% in 2025, pushing total bilateral trade to €251 billion. In the meantime, Berlin’s exports to the US fell by 9.4% in 2025.[viii]
In January 2026 we wrote on this site how Canada had concluded a new strategic partnership with China. The same month, UK Prime Minister Starmer visited China looking to de-risk from an increasingly untrustworthy US. French President Macron visited China in December 2025. The Irish and Finnish Prime Ministers also visited China. For them, China is seen as a stable, consistent economic partner.
Taiwan
Beijing seeks peaceful reunification with Taiwan, but warns that any move toward a formal declaration of independence by Taipei would be met with force! In an earlier discussion with Trump, the Chinese president stressed that it was the most important issue in China-US relations and that Taiwan is part of China’s territory, and China would never allow Taiwan to be separated.
Australia – Quo Vadis?
Washington’s contempt has led to a fundamental rethink among its European and Canadian allies but, Australia which is just as much affected has been conspicuously silent, even doubling down on the controversial AUKUS military pact along with its prohibitively expensive (AU$368 billion) nuclear powered submarine program. Does Australia seriously believe that Beijing would ever want to attack it unless it joins the US in a shooting war against China? It is like conjuring up a phantom enemy to suit the needs of its US “lord and master”.
On the other hand, Canadians have never been more defiant. Australia can learn from Canada and should seriously revisit the awful AUKUS deal which was secretly signed and sealed by former Prime Minister Scott Morrison with no prior public consultation, not even with his colleagues. This resulted in a breach of Australia’s contract with France for the supply of a fleet of much cheaper, quicker to build, diesel powered submarines which would have been far more suited to Australia’s needs. The AUKUS submarines will have power projection into the South China Sea rather than for domestic defence, and they are intended to fight alongside the Americans in the event of a war with China. This, together with existing US military bases in Darwin, Brisbane, Newcastle and Port Kembla makes Australia a potential Chinese target.
It is not too late for Prime Minister Albanese to grow his Mojo![ix]
AUDI ALTERAM PARTEM – HEAR THE OTHER SIDE
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[i] South China Morning Post (SCMP) China is a win-win country but Don’t Cross its Red Lines, 11 Feb 26
[ii] CGTN, Xi calls on China and the US to build mutual trust, 5 Feb 26
[iii] RT, The might of the Dragon, 26 Feb 26
[iv] SCMP, China keeps Ukraine's lights on, 7 Feb 26
[v] The Australian, China eyes Canals to boost trade with Asia, 23 Feb 26
[vi] CGTN, China Hungary to deepen cooperation 12 Feb 26
[vii] RT, China edging out the US, 9 Feb 26
[viii] RT, China overtakes US as Germany's biggest trade partner, 20 Feb 26
[ix] SCMP, The real 51st American state may be gullible Australia, 18 Feb 26