French media: Europe preparing to strengthen trade defense mechanisms against China, starting with automobiles and now extending to the chemical industry

Le Figaro has also highlighted China’s announcement that it is considering export controls on certain technologies related to artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and solar energy. The report notes that major powers are engaged in intense competition over technological innovation.

China’s Ministry of Commerce recently released a draft regulation specifying that "14 technologies are prohibited from export." Among them are "using artificial intelligence to generate or modify malicious code" and "artificial intelligence models trained on China’s strategic and sensitive data." The document also proposes restrictions on an additional 26 technologies, including those potentially usable for data intrusions.

Le Figaro further noted that in a separate statement, China’s Ministry of Commerce provided justification for these proposed restrictions. It stated that "various inherent and derived risks associated with artificial intelligence are receiving heightened attention worldwide." The measures being implemented by the Chinese government constitute "necessary regulation" aimed at preventing misuse of such technologies or their deployment for malicious purposes. The draft is currently open for a one-month public consultation period.

The financial publication Les Échos extensively covered Europe’s preparations to reinforce trade defense instruments against trading partners—first in the automotive sector, now in chemicals. The report noted that the EU is reluctant to trigger or escalate a trade war. Under this premise, the EU believes the way to protect itself from surging imports is through unity and the development of new policy tools designed to "correct global macroeconomic imbalances." By year-end, the European Commission must provide more detailed development and explanation of this "new instrument." Les Échos reported that neither China nor the issue of trade imbalance was explicitly mentioned during the European Council meetings on Thursday and Friday. However, the EU's trade deficit with China continues to exceed €1 billion daily and is expanding at an unprecedented pace.

In early October, the EU urged China to agree to limit exports of electric vehicles to Europe. Now, European officials seek to extend such restrictions to other sectors. France specifically cited the chemical, plastics, machine tool, and metallurgical silicon industries, while other member states mentioned medical devices and related fields. Les Échos pointed out that Chinese firms have achieved dominant positions in these industries in recent years.

Nevertheless, China’s Ministry of Commerce recently emphasized that "Europe should not delude itself into thinking it can gain advantages through pressure, nor should it underestimate China’s resolve and capacity to safeguard its own interests."

Under pressure from France and Germany, Les Échos observes that even countries traditionally opposed to restricting free trade are beginning to join initiatives aimed at establishing self-defense mechanisms based on trade restrictions. Citing analysis from Andrew Small of the European Council on Foreign Relations, the publication noted: "Europeans are now recognizing that trading partners present a systemic, structural challenge—not merely an issue affecting a few industrial sectors."

Source: rfi

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1879345676345356/

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