It’s taken a pandemic for many countries to wake up to just how powerful China really is—and how far its decisions can shape their peoples’ lives.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief recently remarked that Europe doesn’t “make a single gram of paracetamol,” the common pain medication also known as acetaminophen, while China makes most of the world’s antibiotics. One former high-ranking Australian official said that China’s coercive trade threats in response to Canberra’s call for an inquiry into the coronavirus’ origins are a “wake-up call”—despite the fact that China had been engaging in such behavior against other countries for years. The UK, which was supposed to be in the midst of a “golden era” of Sino-British relations, has proclaimed it won’t be “business as usual” with China anymore.
Frantic attempts to recalibrate relations with China are now underway all around the world. Many governments are studying ways to move manufacturing back home, or ensure that supply chains center more around friendly nations. US-China relations now appear to be at the point of no return. Support for Taiwan—which China claims as its own territory—is mounting.