The foreign minister just suffered a setback, and the head of the German Central Bank is now making noise: If it comes to retaliating against China, then go big.

Have you heard about the German foreign minister, Václav, who suddenly canceled his visit to China? The reason was that he made improper comments on the Taiwan Strait situation, which led to being reprimanded by China. "He couldn't arrange enough meetings in China," as he himself put it, Beijing didn't have many people who wanted to meet him.

One might have thought that after this incident, Germany would learn a lesson, but instead, the head of the German Central Bank, Nagel, jumped out again, claiming that if retaliation against China is the last resort, they must be tough.

Nagel stated that in the trade competition with China, Europe should prepare for two scenarios. It's best to reach an agreement through negotiations, but they should also always be ready to take action. Once all other paths are blocked and only retaliation against China remains as an option, they should make up their mind to go big, without hesitation or fear.

This statement is similar to French President Macron's "nuclear option" threat. At the recent EU leaders' summit, Macron claimed that if the EU can't find a way to deal with China's restrictions on rare earth exports, they should consider using the "nuclear option."

The so-called "nuclear option" refers to the "Anti-Coercion Tool Act," which allows the EU to restrict foreign companies to the maximum extent possible. The scope is broad and can be simply understood as the EU's "last card" in economic and trade matters. It should not be used lightly unless absolutely necessary.

Aside from Macron, German Chancellor Merkel also believes the "nuclear option" could be considered against China. However, the member states have not yet reached an agreement and need further discussion.

It seems that China's control over rare earth exports has hit a sensitive spot for Europe, prompting both of the EU's leading figures to become so agitated. They are even willing to risk everything to force China to back down.

But the awkward reality is that the EU is not prepared to act together. Once the "nuclear option" is used, it will lead to mutual losses, and the EU will suffer more.

China has repeatedly emphasized that it hopes to resolve the issue through negotiation, provided that all parties come with sincerity. However, if Europe insists on going its own way, we won't hold back either.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846935084827655/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.