China threatens to send Lithuania to garbage bin of history

[Novus America]

As mentioned they are having their customs agents extralegally delay the entry of Lithuanian goods and goods made with Lithuania parts.

This has pissed off the EU which is filing a WTO complaint and considering further economic retaliation against the PRC but given the EU is slower than a glacier and suffers intense internal divisions on whether to stand up for its members or sell out to hostile regimes and the WTO has utterly failed to do anything to stop PRC rules violations (the PRC should be expelled from the WTO for this out of crap and should never have been let in in the first place but that is not going to happen) it does not seem likely either will actually have much impact any time soon.

https://www.politico.eu/article/france- ... apons/amp/
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/europe ... 1641308138 https://www.politico.eu/article/china-t ... sness/amp/

Hopefully the EU grows a spine and actually takes swift economic retaliation to protect Lithuania (what is the point of a union that will not stand up for its members) as this not only harms Lithuania but other EU countries that use Lithuanian parts in their products.

But I am not holding my breath.

An embargo?

The PRC is not doing an official, legal embargo but is doing a de facto extra legal one that is not openly declared by having its customs agents extralegally or illegally block goods that should be allowed in legally.

This is a tactic used widely by the PRC. Obviously doing something (and wanting people to realize it is) while claiming it is not.

[Arpasia]

An embargo?

The PRC is not doing an official, legal embargo but is doing a de facto extra legal one that is not openly declared by having its customs agents extralegally or illegally block good that should be allowed in legally.

This is a tactic used widely by the PRC. Obviously doing something (and wanting people to realize it is) while claiming it is not.

Oh ok, got it.

All I know for sure is that Lithuania won't end up in the trashcan of history.

[Salvatiotan]

First Russia, now China.

All we need now is North Korea to make some big threat and we'll have the communist trifecta on our bingo ballot.

Ah yes Russia, my favourite communist country.

[Northern Socialist Council Republics]

Considering how much Chinese money is sloshing around in Southern and Eastern Europe these days, expecting any kind of substantive response from the European Union as a whole is... optimistic.

[Big Jim P]

Litha-who?

[THE FAKIS EMPIRE]

China has no right to treathen Lithuania

[Novus America]

Considering how much Chinese money is sloshing around in Southern and Eastern Europe these days, expecting any kind of substantive response from the European Union as a whole is... optimistic.

Unfortunately true. But is still raises the question is what is the point of an EU that is more interested in enriching often hostile foreign powers than protecting its members?

If the EU does nothing the EU loses credibility.

[DeSanta Peradino]

“-58#838282849294949 social credit to Lithuania”-China, probably

[Dreria]

“-58#838282849294949 social credit to Lithuania”-China, probably

damn bro you got the whole squad laughing

[Northern Socialist Council Republics]

Unfortunately true. But is still raises the question is what is the point of an EU that is more interested in enriching hostel powers than protecting its members?

If the EU does nothing the EU loses credibility.

From the perspective of those Southern and Eastern European countries that are receiving significant Chinese investments, and especially those less stable economies for whom Chinese money was the lifeline they so needed in the aftermath of the 2008 Recession and the later Eurozone Crisis, is China really a “hostile power”?

The EU is doing exactly what it is designed to do, which is to do nothing in the absence of a general consensus between its member states. This, incidentally, is why I strongly dislike devolution manifesting itself as the involvement of lower administrative divisions in the affairs of higher governments. But whether I like it or not some governments - like the US Federal Government or the European Commission - are for historical reasons designed to permit explicitly that, so it’s hard to see how the credibility of an institution can be undermined by it acting exactly as it was designed to.

If the US and the larger powers of Northwestern Europe want their anti-Chinese front of like-minded nations so much, then maybe they should stop bullying their weaker “partners” on the economic and diplomatic spheres.

[Novus America]

Unfortunately true. But is still raises the question is what is the point of an EU that is more interested in enriching hostel powers than protecting its members?

If the EU does nothing the EU loses credibility.

From the perspective of those Southern and Eastern European countries that are receiving significant Chinese investments, and especially those less stable economies for whom Chinese money was the lifeline they so needed in the aftermath of the 2008 Recession and the later Eurozone Crisis, is China really a “hostile power”?

The EU is doing exactly what it is designed to do, which is to do nothing in the absence of a general consensus between its member states. This, incidentally, is why I strongly dislike devolution manifesting itself as the involvement of lower administrative divisions in the affairs of higher governments. But whether I like it or not some governments - like the US Federal Government or the European Commission - are for historical reasons designed to permit explicitly that, so it’s hard to see how the credibility of an institution can be undermined by it acting exactly as it was designed to.

If the US and the larger powers of Northwestern Europe want their anti-Chinese front of like-minded nations so much, then maybe they should stop bullying their weaker “partners” on the economic and diplomatic spheres.

Well the PRC extralegally or illegally blocking goods that should be allowed legally from EU countries (not just Lithuania) is certainly not a friendly act.
Not to mention kidnapping EU citizens and such.

If the EU cannot protect its members or benefit them more than foreign powers can it is pretty useless. I agree this is part of inherent flaws in the EU system, but it still comes back to the fundamental problem.
If a foreign dictatorship can come in and divide the EU so easily (on paper EU claims to stand for democracy) because it benefits them more than the EU it does raise the question of if it is actually providing the benefits it is supposed to.

Its inability to do things that are part of its stated goals is an issue. It is supposed to work by consensus AND do things for its members when they need, especially on trade. Which is contradictory.

It needs to make up its mind. Many want it to actually do things to advance its stated values and goals, but others do not. So it has an identity crisis of two different camps within it trying to make it into two very different things.

Macron does for example want it to do more, and protect its members against the PRC’s below the table extralegal embargo. If other members go against that to take politically motivated money from power engaging in such activities there is definitely a problem.

This is much less and issue in the US given the US federal government has nearly absolute power over foreign trade and foreign policy and the president can do a lot of it unilaterally.

[Arpasia]

Litha-who?

Lith-YOU-ania!

[Joohan]

Do we know of any company who for sure has pulled out of or severed ties with Lithuania yet as a result ( or at least suspected ) of this?

[New Baltenstein]

From the perspective of those Southern and Eastern European countries that are receiving significant Chinese investments, and especially those less stable economies for whom Chinese money was the lifeline they so needed in the aftermath of the 2008 Recession and the later Eurozone Crisis, is China really a “hostile power”?

The EU is doing exactly what it is designed to do, which is to do nothing in the absence of a general consensus between its member states. This, incidentally, is why I strongly dislike devolution manifesting itself as the involvement of lower administrative divisions in the affairs of higher governments. But whether I like it or not some governments - like the US Federal Government or the European Commission - are for historical reasons designed to permit explicitly that, so it’s hard to see how the credibility of an institution can be undermined by it acting exactly as it was designed to.

If the US and the larger powers of Northwestern Europe want their anti-Chinese front of like-minded nations so much, then maybe they should stop bullying their weaker “partners” on the economic and diplomatic spheres.

Well the PRC extralegally or illegally blocking goods that should be allowed legally from EU countries (not just Lithuania) is certainly not a friendly act.
Not to mention kidnapping EU citizens and such.

If the EU cannot protect its members or benefit them more than foreign powers can it is pretty useless. I agree this is part of inherent flaws in the EU system, but it still comes back to the fundamental problem.
If a foreign dictatorship can come in and divide the EU so easily (on paper EU claims to stand for democracy) because it benefits them more than the EU it does raise the question of if it is actually providing the benefits it is supposed to.

Its inability to do things that are part of its stated goals is an issue. It is supposed to work by consensus AND do things for its members when they need, especially on trade. Which is contradictory.

It needs to make up its mind. Many want it to actually do things to advance its stated values and goals, but others do not. So it has an identity crisis of two different camps within it trying to make it into two very different things.

Macron does for example want it to do more, and protect its members against the PRC’s below the table extralegal embargo. If other members go against that to take politically motivated money from power engaging in such activities there is definitely a problem.

This is much less and issue in the US given the US federal government has nearly absolute power over foreign trade and foreign policy and the president can do a lot of it unilaterally.

The US is a unified state. The EU is not. As long as the policies of all member-states are decided, first and foremost, by national governments with national electorates, any and all common decisions will be lukewarm compromises that will leave neither participant completely satisified.

[The Hazar Amisnery]

Half the planet probably have never heard of Lithuania. Picking on them won't scare anyone (maybe the UN but the general population won't care)

[GuessTheAltAccount]

Unfortunately true. But is still raises the question is what is the point of an EU that is more interested in enriching hostel powers than protecting its members?

If the EU does nothing the EU loses credibility.

From the perspective of those Southern and Eastern European countries that are receiving significant Chinese investments, and especially those less stable economies for whom Chinese money was the lifeline they so needed in the aftermath of the 2008 Recession and the later Eurozone Crisis, is China really a “hostile power”?

The EU is doing exactly what it is designed to do, which is to do nothing in the absence of a general consensus between its member states. This, incidentally, is why I strongly dislike devolution manifesting itself as the involvement of lower administrative divisions in the affairs of higher governments. But whether I like it or not some governments - like the US Federal Government or the European Commission - are for historical reasons designed to permit explicitly that, so it’s hard to see how the credibility of an institution can be undermined by it acting exactly as it was designed to.

If the US and the larger powers of Northwestern Europe want their anti-Chinese front of like-minded nations so much, then maybe they should stop bullying their weaker “partners” on the economic and diplomatic spheres.

If Europe isn't going to stand up to a country that's literally using Muslims as slave labour, Europe does not get to complain about being "bullied" for its failure to stand up to them.

[Austria-Bohemia-Hungary]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59879762
oh come on vilnius...

[Duvniask]

Oh boy are we having the whole red scare discussion again?

Someone give Duvniask a call and see what an actual socialist thinks about the PRC.

Oh, no need. We actually have an understanding of what an actual socialist thinks about the PRC. Some time in leftist Twitter and Reddit can do that. And most of them say the exact same thing.

>Leftist Twitter and Reddit

Chances are you're not going to gain any wonderful insight.

[-Astoria-]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59879762
oh come on vilnius...

Or more accurately, just the president:

"I think it was not the opening of the Taiwanese office that was a mistake, it was its name, which was not co-ordinated with me," Mr Nauseda told local radio on Tuesday.

China's foreign ministry said recognising a mistake was the right step, but stressed that excuses did not help solve the problem.

That problem, said Lithuania's president, was the name "and now we have to deal with the consequences".

[Countesia]

Based Lithuania. More countries need to stop sucking the teat of cheap Chinese labour and stand up to the communist rebels and what they call a government.

China can easily be defeated without firing a single shot. an international embargo would cripple the economy.

[Austria-Bohemia-Hungary]

Daily reminder that in 1979 PRC started a war of aggression against their allegedly ideological brethren in Vietnam over... defending the Khmer Rouge orchestrated genocide. So no, these guys hasn't been communists for a long, long while and I will serve six raw eggs to anybody who says they are.

[Duvniask]

Based Lithuania. More countries need to stop sucking the teat of cheap Chinese labour and stand up to the communist rebels and what they call a government.

China can easily be defeated without firing a single shot. an international embargo would cripple the economy.

Would also cripple the world economy.

Really well thought out plan there, chief.

[GuessTheAltAccount]

Based Lithuania. More countries need to stop sucking the teat of cheap Chinese labour and stand up to the communist rebels and what they call a government.

China can easily be defeated without firing a single shot. an international embargo would cripple the economy.

Would also cripple the world economy.

Really well thought out plan there, chief.

If the past two years have taught us anything, it's that continued trade and travel with China can "cripple the world economy" too.

[Countesia]

Based Lithuania. More countries need to stop sucking the teat of cheap Chinese labour and stand up to the communist rebels and what they call a government.

China can easily be defeated without firing a single shot. an international embargo would cripple the economy.

Would also cripple the world economy.

Really well thought out plan there, chief.

Might actually force corporations to source and manufacture their goods in a fashion that's economically sustainable. Might even help all the businesses that struggle or are on the verge of losing out to cheap Chinese labour. "Chief"

[Big Jim P]

Half the planet probably have never heard of Lithuania. Picking on them won't scare anyone (maybe the UN but the general population won't care)

I doubt very many Americans could even FIND Lithuania on map. Hell, many couldn't even find China.

Previous joke aside, I am one of the few.