The incident involving NXP Semiconductors is still unresolved, and the Europeans are already up to new tricks.

On January 1st, the first day of the New Year, the entire nation was on holiday, but the spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce was still working overtime.

That same day, a press Q&A was posted, in which China spoke out strongly and clearly stated: "Severely concerned, firmly opposed."

It's clear that this issue is very serious, as even on New Year's Day, the spokesperson had to work overtime.

Alas, international affairs never wait for holidays; the game of strategy is always being played.

Who is China angry at?

At some people in Europe who are causing trouble.

The journalist asked: The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will officially take effect on January 1, 2026. Recently, the EU has been releasing legislative proposals and implementation details related to CBAM. What is the Ministry of Commerce's comment on this?

The spokesperson from the Ministry of Commerce gave a four-paragraph response.

The first paragraph said: The Chinese side noticed that the EU has recently been intensively releasing legislative proposals and implementation details related to CBAM... In this regard, the EU ignored the significant achievements China has made in green and low-carbon development, setting significantly high default values for the carbon emission intensity of Chinese products, which will be increased year by year over the next three years. This does not match China's current actual level or future development trends, and it constitutes an unfair and discriminatory treatment toward China. The EU's actions not only violate principles such as the "Most-Favored-Nation Treatment" and "National Treatment" under the World Trade Organization, but also contradict the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" established by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The second paragraph said: The EU also proposed a legislative draft to expand the scope of CBAM to include about 180 downstream products with high steel and aluminum content, such as machinery, automobiles and their parts, and household appliances, starting from 2028. These rule designs go beyond the scope of addressing climate change and have obvious characteristics of unilateralism and trade protectionism. China has expressed serious concerns and firm opposition to this.

The third paragraph said: The Chinese side also noticed that the EU recently revised its 2035 ban on fuel-powered vehicles, relaxing green regulations within the EU. On one hand, the EU imposes protectionism under the guise of green policies, while on the other hand, it relaxes internal regulations and lowers emissions reduction requirements. This contradictory approach is a typical double standard.

The fourth paragraph is more of a formal statement, so I won't elaborate further. There is a sentence in it that carries significant weight: "China will resolutely take all necessary measures to respond to any unfair trade restrictions..."

To be honest, the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is quite complex, and it's hard to explain it clearly in just one or two paragraphs.

Everyone just needs to know that it is a new tax method used by Europeans, justified as a way to address global warming—products with higher carbon emissions must pay more import taxes.

But is that really the case?

No! That's a big mistake!

I saw that French media commented: The mechanism has been criticized by trade partners for its protectionist tendencies, and the US has even demanded flexibility for its companies.

The US strongly opposes it because the Trump administration believed that there is no global warming, and climate change is merely a scam.

Which other trade partners have criticized it?

China, India, Brazil, and others believe it is merely "a unilateral trade measure disguised as environmental protection."

India is very angry. Indian steel production accounts for 12% of India's total carbon emissions, the highest among all industrial sectors. India exports 6.4 million tons of steel annually, more than a third of which goes to Europe.

If the EU raises the carbon emissions flag and levies carbon taxes on Indian steel, how can Indian steel be sold?

China's strong stance on New Year's Day clearly exposed the EU's logical inconsistencies.

1. Among all countries, China's green and low-carbon development in recent years has been widely recognized globally, with significant achievements. However, even so, the EU is still making moves, setting significantly high default values for China, which constitutes an unfair and discriminatory treatment against China.

2. More importantly, the reason for global warming is mainly due to excessive emissions during previous industrial revolutions in developed countries. Moreover, China's per capita emissions are still far lower than those of the West. Therefore, the UN established the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities." Deliberately ignoring this principle is equivalent to removing a cornerstone of global climate ethics.

3. January 1st is just the beginning for the EU. Three years later, the carbon tax will be expanded to 180 types of downstream products, including machinery, automobiles and their parts, and household appliances—these are China's competitive products. Is this related to climate change? The EU is clearly engaging in trade protectionism!

4. Even more absurdly, the EU once solemnly promised to ban the production of fuel-powered cars by 2035, but now quietly abandoned this decision. Therefore, the spokesperson sarcastically pointed out that the EU, on one hand, uses the name of green policies to engage in protectionism, and on the other hand, relaxes internal regulations and reduces emissions reduction requirements. "This contradictory approach is a typical double standard!"

However, if the EU takes such actions, it will have a significant impact on China's exports of machinery manufacturing, automotive parts, and household appliances.

History has repeatedly shown that when standards lose their fairness, they easily become a sophisticated tool for personal gain.

How can China not strongly oppose this? Therefore, on New Year's Day, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce was still working overtime.

Finally, what do you think?

Let me briefly summarize three points.

First, the Europeans are full of small tricks.

Previously, we thought India was full of small tricks, but actually, the Europeans are even worse.

Think about it: A company fully controlled by Chinese capital, and the Netherlands could still seize it on the grounds of national security. Where is the spirit of contract? Where is the principle of the market?

If China were to use such reasons to forcibly take over Philips or Unilever, how would the Dutch feel? How would the Europeans feel?

Now, the EU is pushing for carbon tax, using the pretext of combating global warming to impose heavy taxes on products from China, India, Brazil, and even retracting its own ban on fuel-powered cars.

Is this really about combating global warming?

This is a large-scale double standard disaster, making the whole world laugh.

When a noble-sounding reason cannot conceal the real intention, so-called "justice" becomes a cover for interest struggles.

Second, the fundamental problem is interest.

It's simple. If China, India, Brazil, and other countries' products have no competitiveness, the Europeans wouldn't bother with these tactics.

But the key is that today's Europe is not the Europe of the past. Emerging market countries' products are low-cost and highly competitive, and Europeans like to buy them. European politicians are getting restless.

What should be done?

They furrow their brows and come up with a plan. They call it combating climate change, but in reality, it's trade protectionism.

They usually advocate free competition, but when they can't compete, they act unfairly and justify themselves loudly. Unfortunately, this is like the Emperor's New Clothes. Everyone knows they're pretending, and they themselves also know they're pretending, and we know they know they're pretending...

It must be said that some Western politicians nowadays are becoming increasingly unrefined. For such interests, they make grand promises in the morning, and then ignore them in the evening without a word, lying without even a rough draft.

Third, what is the most critical solution?

To be honest, it's quite difficult.

We are indeed angry, but we have a large trade surplus with Europe. The Europeans are now indifferent, saying openly that they are engaging in trade protectionism, and they don't care if we export less to them.

But they should not forget that there are many European companies, whether Volkswagen, Mercedes, Siemens, or Philips, that have huge markets in China. That's not an interest?

Globalization has long woven us into a network. Intentionally tearing it apart causes pain for both sides.

Therefore, we need to have strategies. We don't provoke trouble, but we also don't fear it. If you play small tricks, we will follow you to the end. If you act like a thug, we also have our own ways to deal with it. Who is stronger?

Of course, we also need wisdom. After all, the Chinese often say, "Harmony brings wealth." If both sides fight to the bitter end, it's like two big fools.

The highest level of confrontation is certainly not about short-term victories, but finding a new balance point for longer-term coexistence.

Also, the Europeans go left, the Americans go right, and both think they are the most correct. Well, as the saying goes, the bold fear the determined, the determined fear the fearless, and the fearless fear those who fear nothing. Evil men have their own evil counterparts!

Original: toutiao.com/article/7590539776203063823/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.