In the summer, we arrived in Brussels with new trends. A pigeon comes out and a Hawks are inside.
After weeks of telegraph signs have been diplomatically reconcilied with China, or at least thawed, Ursula von der Leyen suddenly made the face of Volte at the G7 Summit With broadside attack Beijing’s “patterns of domination, dependence, intimidation and threats” against trading partners, including the European Union and the United States.
“China has primarily shown that it dislikes living within the constraints of the rules-based international system,” von der Leyen said in his intervention.
“Others have opened markets, but China focused on acquiring large subsidies aimed at intellectual property protection, global manufacturing and controlling supply chains,” she continued. “This is not market competition, it’s a distortion of intention.”
The European Commission president declared in 2001 that the source of the “biggest collective problem” in the world trade system is China’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Beijing’s entry into the WTO is highly controversial as it opened an international market in the wave of low-cost exports. Admission is linked to the so-called “China shock” and the decline in manufacturing employment in both the EU and the US.
The G7 summit warned that a “new Chinese shock” was ongoing from Leyen.
It was a gloved condemnation that exposed the state of mind of the commission chief, and her growing discomfort and rage. In many ways, it was a return to Hawkish’s stance on her first mission, during which she promoted the concept of “risk-taking” in order to reduce the vulnerable dependencies that China could exploit.
Beijing I immediately fought back At the invitation of von der Reyen. Guo Zi-Kung, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called her statement “basically unfounded” and “biased.”
However, Guo did not miss the opportunity to offer new olive branches.
“China is ready to increase communication and coordination with the EU, handle trade differences appropriately and achieve win-win and shared prosperity,” he said.
“That being said, we will firmly oppose attempts to undermine China’s development rights, or even assert our own interests at Chinese costs.”
A reset that never happened
The attempt to reconciliation fits Beijing’s “attractive attack” with it facing the block, in response to President Donald Trump’s destructive policies, which, as diplomats call, impose punitive tariffs on allies and enemies alike.
Sensing an imminent rupture in the Western Alliance, China has given several overtures to the favour of curry in Brussels, including lifting Controversial sanctions Regarding lawmakers, we will be ahead of the EU-China Summit, scheduled for late July.
Last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping was welcomed 50th anniversary Bilateral relations are an opportunity for diplomacy to “open a brighter future.”
Von Der Leyen replied: “We are committed to deepening our partnership with China. A balanced relationship built on equity and reciprocity is our common interest.”
However, in her G7 intervention, this commitment was notable due to her absence as Trump was delivered in the room. Instead, she let the Taka move freely.
At the heart of her speech was Beijing’s recent decision to limit the sale of seven rare earth materials.
China holds a quasi-unit position over rare earths, the 17 metal elements essential to building cutting-edge technology. The country has ordered about 60% of the world’s supply and 90% of its processing and refinement capacity.
There are restrictions but It’s softened Recently, von der Leyen warned that “threats remain” and called on the G7 to close the ranks to build up extra pressure on China.
The rare earth is just the tip of the iceberg made up of the commercial conflict that drove a distinctive wedge between Brussels and Beijing. Over the past few years, I’ve seen the block impose the duty of growing up in China. Electric carexcludes Chinese companies from public bids Medical Deviceslabels Huawei and ZTE as “high risk suppliers” of 5G networks and launches an investigation into the suspicious use of industrial subsidies.
Brussels also accused Beijing of being involved Large campaign Foreign information manipulation and interference (known as fimi), Hacking to state agenciesIt promotes military tensions in the Taiwan Strait, violates the human rights of the Uyghur population, and serves as a “critical enabler” for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Despite the big pleas from Europeans, Xi Jinping doubled his “endless” partnership with Vladimir Putin, causing disappointment and rage across the continent.
Noah Birkin, a visiting senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, says China has missed the opportunity von der Leyen to offer after Trump’s inauguration by sticking to long-standing practices.
“The unstable criticism of China at the Von der Leyen G7 Summit is Beijing’s response to incompromising. The July summit is unlikely to produce substantial deliverables unless China shows its willingness to address European concerns,” Birkin said.
“The possibility is that tensions between the EU and China continue to grow. The closure of the US market to Chinese products will lead to a shift in exports to Europe, increasing the threat to the European industry.
Keep it real
Von Der Leyen has won praise for her clear-eyed false assessment of EU-China relations, but her views are not universally accepted by member states, the true guardians of political power.
In April, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez flew to Beijing to hold a bilateral meeting with President XI, pleading to turn the page with a confrontational approach.
“Spain supports a more balanced relationship between the European Union and China, finding negotiated solutions to our differences and greater cooperation in areas of common interest,” Sanchez said.
The Spanish words quickly grabbed Brussels’ attention and sent speculations of a diplomatic reset overdrive. However, Alicja Bachulska, a policy fellow at the European Council of Foreign Relations (ECFR), says the talk of the talk can never be trusted.
“The hope of a possible reset was largely predicted by those who had not made eye contact with von der Leyen’s committee, if any,” Bachurska told Euroneus.
“This committee appears to be very consistent with explaining its approach to China and how it sees the threats, challenges and very limited opportunities for cooperation with China under current conditions.”
Of course, politics comes with economics.
In many countries, especially export-oriented countries, China remains a highly valued market of 1.4 billion people despite the multiple obstacles and hurdles facing European companies. When doing business. If Trump fails trade talks, avoiding cushions is considered essential to avoid, or at least mitigating, potentially disruptive effects, as it threatens an incredible 50% tariff on the bloc.
Trade is at the top of the EU-China Summit agenda, and both sides look forward to announcing something. Brussels wants to end Chinese Probes They consider brandy, pork and dairy products to be unfair.
But as the date approaches, we hope for a trade breakthrough that can make a concrete difference to the ground and relieve some of the tension, as shown by the hardened tone at the G7.
“That’s realistic. We still see China as a partner, a competitor and a rival,” the senior diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We probably need to be more confident in our interests, what we can do to pursue better things, but we also have to act when actions are taken that threaten the stability of the continent.”
Diplomats from other countries have maintained a cool head to low expectations before the summit, claiming that China’s alliance with Russia and campaigns of foreign interference remain “serious” and “intrusive” factors without any signs of improvement.
“If you really want to deepen your relationship with us, it’s impossible to act like this,” the diplomat said.
“The EU needs to stand up for its own benefit, no matter who is in the White House.”
