Geopolitical Chess or Checkers?
Are Western Alliances Sleepwalking into Beijing’s Embrace?
In her speech today at the World Economic Forum, EU President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU is working on an Arctic Security package to address the issue of Greenland, ostensibly to placate American concerns regarding its security in a world of growing global rivalries.
Soon after, American Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent was asked by Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo if a NATO-EU security deal in the arctic would suffice and he replied, “We’re seeing with the base we’ve shared with the UK for many years [Diego Garcia], the UK is signing the [Chagos] island over to Mauritius. So, I can see why the President believes that for US engagement, we don’t want another Diego Garcia on our hands.”
According to some experts, China exerts significant influence and leverage over Mauritius which could impact the base at Diego Garcia. This influence is also seen with some concern by India because of China’s growing activities in the Indian Ocean.
The UK has just given the greenlight for a Chinese mega-embassy in London that has raised considerable security concerns that have been brushed off by the Labour government. (This apparently paves the way for Prime Minister Starmer’s state visit to China at the end of January 2026.)
Canada led by Mark Carney, a Europhile attempting closer alignment with the UK and EU, and distancing Canada away from the US (in March last year he said Canada’s strategic, economic, and military cooperation with America was over), was in Beijing last week signing a number of memoranda of understandings. He called Canada’s pivot to Communist China a “strategic partnership” and a step towards a “new world order.” What order might that be? Is it in service to the fulfillment of Communist China’s one hundred year marathon?
Perhaps the offer to purchase Greenland by the United States is to prevent the Chinese from purchasing it or exerting influence over the area through the EU, which, like Canada and the UK, seems to be courting “strategic partnership” with Communist China.
Carney made a great speech in Davos yesterday. Some of it even accurately describes what has been happening. However, all these MOUs he keeps signing he presents as if they were treaties or contracts when actually they are nothing more than to do lists.
I was surprised to find that all he had achieved in China with his recent visit was another bunch of vague MOUs. What we are getting as Canadians is not binding agreements with China or others like Alberta, but merely agreement theatre for the cameras.
Great article!