A question in which China constitutes a question: it is not effective in which China constitutes a threat to the security of citizens, what will be the position of Portugal, increasingly dependent on Beijing? The answer is far from obvious for a country that voluntarily threw itself into the pockets of the Chinese in several strategic sectors. but it matters insist on the question (already asked by Bruno Faria Lopes) in search of a complete answer. Whether silent before or evident and noisy, the war in Ukraine reminds us of the consequences for those who place it in dependence on autocratic states — see, for example, German energy dependence on Russia. The strategic choices are important and therefore must be the subject of public and political debate.

Russia was, for years, with benevolence. There was a time when European leaders did to build a friendship with Putin. Now, since Russia invaded Ukraine, the Kremlin’s allies in Western countries have been put in check. In Portugal, the pressure fell on the PCP, which stands (as always) for the defense of Russian interests. In France, presidential candidate Marine Le Pen saw her campaign filmed for funding from the Russian regime that your party has benefited for many years. And across Europe, the situation repeated itself: on the left and right ends, Putin had allies, united by the common of defending institutions such as democracies and European ones. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has made that relationship untenable — and these Putin allies have ostracized.

Now imagine this: what if these allies, instead of being on the anti-system fringes of European states, right at the center of the political system (in the governing parties, in the largest national structural companies, in the structural sectors of European economies) — how limited the response of enemy states? The question is not so abstract: they have the imagination, just think about China’s imagination and the dependence that countries like Portugal currently have on Beijing.

China is the 5th country that invests the most in Portugal — the US is in 8th place. Ahead of China, only Spain, France, the United Kingdom and Portuguese companies based abroad. It is not a coincidence, but privileged treatment: Portugal is at the top of the European countries where China invests the most. And, unlike Spain or France, the weight of Chinese investment is in strategic sectors, such as electricity, water and gas, due to the position of China Three Gorges in EDP and Fosun in REN. Along the same lines, China saw the Port of Sines as a key point in its “Sea Silk Road”which aims at the Chinese ports to the rest and expand the exports of products from Portugal, from the beginning, beginning and end if available for the next Chinese. Marcelo and Coast already addressed the issue). In the Azores, there is talk of the possibility of Chinese takeover of port of victoria, with a view to placing China at the center of global energy networks. The visits of senior Chinese officials to the Azores illustrate this interest.

Examples are multiplied in other sectors, such as the financial system or health. And, at the same breakneck pace at which the influence of Chinese capital in Portugal grows, so does international concerns. In 2019, Portugal was described in the international press like a Trojan horse from China, installed in the heart of the EU. Giving substance to these international concerns, Prime Minister António Costa frequently intervened in defense of Chinese investment, namely in an interview with the Financial Timesjustifying the strategic value of partnerships with China. Last month, António Costa insisted and asked for the reinforcement of Portugal’s cooperation with China. Now, in the US and the EU, apprehension is increasingly evident. It is recalled that, in 2020, the US pressure manifested itself explicitly: the US ambassador in Lisbon warned that Portugal would have to choose between the US and China. Consequently, in several deals in strategic areas, the US is considering joining in order to stop China’s expansion.

As is almost always the case, money rules those who only look at the short term. But, as history has reminded us of Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine, the money of the autocracies dependencies that later come out expensive. So maybe we should object, ask questions and ask the Portuguese authorities for explanations about China — before the day comes when we regret the silence.