So much for Beijing’s charm offensive
"Expressing concern" is one of the more weasly examples of diplo-speak. It informs the world that a government does not approve of something that is going on while making it explicitly clear that they don’t actually plan to do anything about it. Various countries have been "expressing concern" for years over the ongoing massacre in ...
"Expressing concern" is one of the more weasly examples of diplo-speak. It informs the world that a government does not approve of something that is going on while making it explicitly clear that they don't actually plan to do anything about it. Various countries have been "expressing concern" for years over the ongoing massacre in Darfur without much in the way of action to back it up.
"Expressing concern" is one of the more weasly examples of diplo-speak. It informs the world that a government does not approve of something that is going on while making it explicitly clear that they don’t actually plan to do anything about it. Various countries have been "expressing concern" for years over the ongoing massacre in Darfur without much in the way of action to back it up.
This statement from Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao in response to the International Criminal court’s indictment of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for genocide sets a shocking new standard for chutzpah though:
"China expresses grave concern and misgivings about the International Criminal Court prosecutor’s indictment of the Sudanese leader. The ICC’s actions must be beneficial to the stability of the Darfur region and the appropriate settlement of the issue, not the contrary."
With the Olympics less than a month away, China is unlikely to take any actual action to block the indictment; hence the "grave concern."
Joshua Keating was an associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating
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