China defends the “fighting spirit” of Xi’s foreign policy

Chinese diplomats in the United Kingdom have come under scrutiny this week after a Hong Kong protester was dragged into the Chinese consulate in Manchester on Sunday and assaulted in an incident being investigated by police.

“Dare to fight is the spiritual nature of Chinese diplomacy,” Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu told a press conference at the ruling Communist Party’s biennial congress in Beijing on Thursday.

“Chinese diplomacy will continue to demonstrate combat prowess, improve our fighting capabilities and always stand at the forefront to protect our national interests and dignity,” he added.

Britain summoned Chinese officials in London on Tuesday to explain what happened at the consulate on Sunday. British Foreign Secretary James was smart to say that the protest, which involved 30 to 40 people, including Hong Kong citizens now living in Britain, was peaceful and legal.

China has denied this and other critical accounts of its diplomats’ actions during protests against Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday.

Xi is widely expected to seek a third term as leader at the 20th Party Congress, which ends this weekend.

Zheng Xiyuan, China’s consul-general in Manchester, who was accused of involvement in the incident, defended his actions, saying the man had “abused my country and my leader”.

“It’s my duty,” Zheng told Sky News on Wednesday. “I think every diplomat, when faced with such behavior, has to defend his dignity.”

With relations with the West strained by issues such as human rights and Covid-19, Chinese diplomats under Xi have become more assertive in public. Some critics see the crackdown as aimed at domestic audiences, although it also affects foreign relations, such as when the French Foreign Ministry summoned Chinese Ambassador Lu Xie in March 2021 over repeated insults and threats against French lawmakers and an investigator.

A global survey by the Washington-based Pew Research Center found that public opinion toward China in the United States and other advanced economies has turned “significantly more negative” under Xi.

The Wolf Warrior’s martial diplomacy style earned him the nickname of a popular patriotic Chinese film franchise.