Chinese professor Zhang Weiwei to Europe: You are harming your own interests
Prof. from Fudan University. In his speech at the Schiller Institute panel, Zhang Weiwei stated that Europe has damaged its own interests by becoming the "vassal" of the USA. Weiwei stated that China defends the principle of "unite and become rich" against the West's "divide and rule" philosophy and proves this with projects such as the Belt and Road Initiative.
Prof. from Fudan University. In his speech at the panel organized by the Schiller Institute, Zhang Weiwei harshly criticized Europe, stating that the world has already reached a multipolar structure.
Stating that the total GDP of the BRICS compared to the purchasing power parity surpassed the G7, Weiwei said, "Multipolarity is already here. According to the purchasing power parity of the BRICS, the total GDP is much greater than the G7; corresponds to about 40 percent of the world's GDP, while the share of the G7 is 33 percent," he said.
“Europe is no longer autonomous”
Drawing attention to the problems in China-Europe relations, Weiwei stated that there is a "deeply rooted distrust" against China on the European Union (EU) side.
Weiwei said, "From China's point of view, Europe is no longer so autonomous today, not to mention that it is independent. As French President Macron stated, it has the status of a kind of vassal to the USA. They are trying to serve American interests rather than real European interests," he said.
Criticizing Europe's energy policies, Weiwei said that China has reached an energy self-sufficiency rate of 85 percent, while in Europe, this rate is around 40 percent.
“With this kind of energy level of self-sufficiency, you don't even turn a blind eye to the bombing and destruction of pipelines in the North Sea and open an investigation,” Weiwei said. It's a shame. This is unacceptable and of course it harms German industry and Europe as a whole," he said.
"China's philosophy: Unite and get rich"
Weiwei criticized the fact that China's activities in Africa were seen as geopolitical competition, emphasizing that these approaches are based on a philosophical distinction.
The Chinese professor made the following assessments:
“The idea of the West is 'divide and rule', which is very stupid. We must encourage 'unite and get rich'. We have done this in our own country in recent years. Now we are spreading this idea all over the world. The main difference between China and the United States is that the philosophy for the USA and the West in general is 'friend or enemy'. Chinese philosophy is 'friend or potential friend'. That's what makes all the difference.”
Stating that China has built or modernized more than 10 thousand kilometers of railways in Africa and built more than 100 ports within the scope of the Belt and Road Initiative, Weiwei said that these projects are based on the principle of "discussing together, building together and making use together" and are well received in Africa.
"We greened the Taklamakan Desert"
Stating that China acts with the "spirit of we can do it" and gets results with concrete projects, Weiwei argued that Europe is generally content with discussing.
Weiwei cited his country's achievements in the fight against green energy and desertification as an example.
Weiwei said, “The Oasis Plan, which was put forward by the Schiller Institute in the 1970s, can be realized with today's technologies and green funding. China surrounded the Taklamakan Desert, one of the largest deserts in the world and the size of Germany, with a green belt. This is a product of 46 years of uninterrupted effort. In this green belt, we have photovoltaic fields where millions of solar panels have been installed. There are drought-resistant plants underneath. Thanks to this, Xinjiang has become one of the largest producers of grain, wheat and corn in China. This is an incredible achievement," he said.
Weiwei added that this experience, equipment and green financing opportunities can be used to make the Oasis Plan a reality.