President of Finland: China, Russia and perhaps the USA want to return to the concert of powers

China, Russia and perhaps also the USA want to return to the 19th century concert of powers and spheres of influence, we must unite and focus on multilateralism, said the President of Finland, Alex Stubb, at the Munich Security Conference on Friday. He suggested that the US no longer leads the West.

Stubb spoke on a panel about tariffs being used as an economic weapon. Stubb, German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil and World Trade Organization Secretary General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala argued that in the face of economic threats from the US and China, middle powers and countries in the global South should unite and uphold and reform the rules-based international system.

– We live in a triangle of power, where we have the global West, the global South and the global East. The Global East is led by China. The global West was led by the United States, and the global South recognized that it might have to choose between them, Stubb said. As he said, the choice is currently “binary”, between a multipolar world based on a transactional approach and spheres of influence, and multilateralism based on rules and cooperation. He stressed that the Southern approach would decide which model would win.

– There are countries that would like to return to the 19th century, to the concert of powers and spheres of influence. And you can certainly say that it is Russia, and China too to some extent. You could also argue that the US administration does too. So what do we need to do? I think that (…) middle-level powers (…) must unite and focus on multilateralism, he emphasized.

He was echoed by Minister Klingbeil, who said that in the light of this new situation, Germany's priority is to strengthen the strength and sovereignty of Europe.

– We have a president in the White House who threatens us with tariffs, and we have a competitor in the form of China, which conducts unfair trade relations with us in terms of state subsidies and overproduction – he said. He added that the answer is closer integration of the EU to increase its strength.

– Then we will decide whether we will go one way or the other, not the United States or China – he emphasized.

Republican Senator Thom Tillis, who participated in the discussion – known for his criticism of the White House's foreign policy – admitted that President Donald Trump's tariff policy towards US allies is a great gift to China. However, he assessed that increasing Europe's strength and independence does not have to be bad for the United States.

Oskar Górzyński (PAP)

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