Text | Bai Yujing, media person

It seems that China's efforts to gain the understanding and recognition of these European countries have not been successful.

Recently, a Hong Kong media outlet published an article stating that China's attempts to persuade the EU to view Sino-EU relations as a "strategic partnership" are now approaching their limits.

The article cited a former Chinese diplomat who said that for China, the EU remains an important partner economically. However, in political and security terms, China's requests for the EU to align more with its "strategic partner" positioning have gradually encountered bottlenecks.

This statement is quite realistic and painful: the case involving Netherlands' NXP is still ongoing, and now the EU has once again created problems for China.

This Thursday, the EU announced it would launch an anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese tire exports, citing "unfair competition" similar to electric vehicles. According to the statement, the EU will complete the investigation within 13 months and may impose temporary tariffs on Chinese tires within 9 months.

Remember when Trump first took office, people had high expectations for Sino-EU relations, but now the EU's choices have been disappointing.

Over the past few years, we have always hoped that the EU could remain independent in the Sino-US rivalry and not completely follow Washington's rhythm, but now it seems this idea is becoming increasingly difficult to realize.

For China, the EU was originally an ideal partner. After all, there are no fundamental security conflicts between the two sides, less historical burdens, and strong economic complementarity. China can provide powerful manufacturing, green technology, and a vast market, while Europe has a high-end industrial system and technological innovation. In theory, this should be a natural partnership.

But the problem is that the external political environment has changed. Especially since the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict, Europe's security anxiety was suddenly triggered. Plus, Biden's administration emphasizes rallying European allies, developing transatlantic relations, and value diplomacy, causing many countries to realign towards the United States, even if it means sacrificing some economic interests to "stand firmly on the right side" politically.

In recent years, the EU has verbally stated its desire for "strategic autonomy," but in practice, it has become increasingly dependent on the US. Whether it is defense cooperation under the NATO framework or industrial policies in chips, semiconductors, and supply chains, the EU basically aligns with the US.

China has long recognized this trend, so its expectations for the "strategic partnership" with the EU are very practical - we never seek the EU to take sides, but rather hope it at least does not follow the US's rhythm on all issues.

The electric vehicle tariff is a typical example. Last year, the EU launched a so-called anti-subsidy investigation against Chinese electric vehicles and planned to impose additional tariffs. On the surface, this is a technical measure in the trade field, but in reality, it is mixed with a strong political flavor - because the US had already imposed high tariffs and restrictions on Chinese new energy products in 2023, and the EU's subsequent actions seem more like a "coordinated move" under US pressure.

Entering 2025, with Trump's return, China initially had some hopes for Sino-EU relations. For example, just after Trump announced adding "reciprocal tariffs" on various countries, China and the EU started negotiations on the minimum price commitment for electric vehicles.

China hoped to resolve the electric vehicle issue in the same way as it did in 2013 to resolve the Sino-EU photovoltaic dispute, but after half a year, this matter has basically been left unresolved, with no further updates yet.

In fact, China is not only willing to set a "minimum price" for electric vehicles exported to Europe, but also holds an "open attitude" towards green technology cooperation and sharing requested by the EU, without outright refusal.

However, not only has the electric vehicle issue not been resolved, but the EU is now planning to impose tariffs on new areas - this time tires, what next? Steel, machinery, or electronic products?

It can be said that today's situation is quite interesting: the EU mouthes "independent autonomy," but in many key decisions, they are increasingly resembling copying the American script. For instance, restricting Chinese semiconductor investments, initiating numerous supply chain security reviews, imposing tariffs on electric vehicles, and regulating AI technologies, almost all following the US policy trajectory.

Since the era of Trump 1.0, EU politicians have started to put the word "independent autonomy" on their lips.

But after so many years, the EU has not gained more strategic autonomy, and instead, due to repeated compliance with US pressure, they are paying more economic costs - many European business and industry figures clearly see this, but due to so-called "political correctness," they are reluctant to speak out publicly.

Recently, the incident involving Netherlands' NXP has been seen by everyone, essentially reflecting the pressure from the US on the Netherlands and the EU.

When Sino-US tech competition extends to Europe, Europeans have proven through actual actions that their "independent autonomy" is all talk and no action - a good hand has been turned into the current situation by the EU itself.

Although Sino-EU relations have not reached an end, they have indeed entered a more pragmatic and more difficult stage. The real test is whether the EU can make a choice that truly belongs to itself between interests and positions.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7570009042085495330/

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