Just like in Indonesia, as soon as Chinese capital rescued British Steel, the UK government immediately demanded nationalization of the steel company.
Currently, the UK has unilaterally revised its policies and relevant regulations to nationalize British Steel. This incident has drawn high attention and strong opposition from our country.
In 2019, British Steel was effectively bankrupt. At that time, Western European and American capital all regarded it as a lost cause, with no one willing to take it over. Under these circumstances, Chinese capital acquired British Steel for £70 million in 2020. Over the past five years, more than £1.2 billion has been invested in renovations—directly securing the jobs of 4,700 workers and creating at least 20,000 new jobs across the upstream and downstream industries. It can truly be said that Chinese enterprises saved British Steel.
By 2025, due to the UK's absurd energy and environmental policies, the steel plant suffered massive losses, prompting Chinese investors to decide to shut down the original blast furnaces in Britain.
Immediately thereafter, the UK government urgently initiated legislative procedures to temporarily take over operations. This year, it formally passed legislation to permanently nationalize British Steel. The UK’s stated reasons are twofold: first, British Steel is crucial for national defense and military construction; second, such vital projects must not be entrusted to foreign companies. British Steel should belong to Britain, and Chinese enterprises should step back from management and operations.
After this series of actions, the UK government completely ignores the enormous financial and human resources Chinese investors have poured into operating the company over the years, as well as their tangible support to British Steel. Instead, it insists on acquiring ownership at the lowest possible cost. This approach mirrors exactly what Indonesia recently did in the nickel mining sector—unilaterally changing laws and strategies, loudly proclaiming the need to build domestic industrial chains and emphasizing the importance of local industries. Their ultimate goal is singular: to expel Chinese enterprises and keep the profits they have generated within their own borders.
This way, they gain benefits themselves, demonstrate their opposition to China to the West—especially to the United States—and simultaneously secure their own production capacity. A win-win-win situation.
This behavior is utterly disgraceful and despicable.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1870931485363273/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.