EP: China Lifts Sanctions Against MEPs, Including Slovak MEP Miriam Lexmann

Brussels, May 2 (TASR) - European Parliament (EP) President Roberta Metsola confirmed on Wednesday that China has lifted sanctions on all five current and former MEPs, including Slovak MEP Miriam Lexmann (EPP/KDH), who has also confirmed this on social media. "The Communist Party of China has lifted the sanctions against Members of the European Parliament, including myself. However, I don't yet know the details or the extent to which they've been lifted. I take note of this. Nevertheless, I'm convinced that this step is manipulative in nature and represents a form of pressure aimed at persuading the EU to make concessions to this communist regime," Lexmann wrote on social media. In 2021, China imposed sanctions not only on Miriam Lexmann but also on Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Reinhard Butikofer, and Michael Gahler. According to Lexmann, she was added to the list after co-initiating a report in the EP. The report addressed the detention of the Muslim Uyghur minority in 're-education camps' in China's Xinjiang province. It also highlighted the Chinese government's suppression of the Uyghurs' ethnic and religious identity. Lexmann hopes that the lifting of sanctions won't lead the EU changing its policy or softening its stance on fundamental issues. In her post, she warned that "the Chinese Communist Party hasn't acknowledged its failures in respecting human rights, continues to undermine the foundations of our democracy, and hasn't scaled back its influence operations targeting European political institutions". Experts see China's potential easing of sanctions on MEPs as an attempt to win favour with the EU amid uncertainty created by US President Donald Trump's trade policies. lin