While Trump was busy uniting Australia to counter China, the EU took an unusual path, not following the US, but instead calling China and sending a special invitation letter, explicitly stating that the situation was critical.

Shevchenko

Recently, European Union Trade Commissioner Shevchenko had a video call with China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao lasting more than two hours. The main topic of the call was China's strengthened control over rare earth exports. Shevchenko clearly stated in the call that Europe did not want to make this issue too embarrassing and had no intention of escalating conflicts with China.

After the meeting, Shevchenko said he had sent an invitation letter to China, requesting Chinese officials to visit Brussels to jointly seek solutions with European officials. According to him, Minister Wang Wentao has accepted the invitation. For China, the EU's video call is unexpected yet reasonable.

The reasonableness lies in the fact that, like other countries in the world, the EU is heavily dependent on China in the rare earth sector. After China announced new measures to control rare earth exports, von der Leyen warned European parliamentarians that this move by China could have a significant impact on European companies, including important sectors such as digital, automotive, energy, and defense.

Wang Wentao and Shevchenko

The facts indeed proved this. According to Shevchenko's description, EU officials have already communicated with some representatives from European business sectors, including global giants such as Volkswagen and Siemens. Although the situations faced by various industries differ, there is no one-size-fits-all solution in the short term, but European companies are all in a very difficult position.

Although China has left a buffer space for European companies in its rare earth export restrictions, the Ministry of Commerce has clearly stated that it has set up a "green channel" to expedite the approval of applications from European companies, and the control measures comply with international practices. However, according to Shevchenko, so far, only half of the license applications have been approved by China.

European Rare Earth Processing Plants

Seeing enterprises face serious impacts, which may even affect the entire industrial foundation of Europe, the EU has changed its previous tough stance and approached China to ease relations, which is understandable. However, what is surprising is that the day before the EU called China, Trump had just signed a rare earth agreement with Australia.

Faced with the same situation, Trump chose to cooperate with Australia to counter China. While the EU has often followed the US in sanctioning China, this time it made a different choice. The EU's deliberate distancing from the US on the rare earth issue is an inevitable result of its pursuit of strategic autonomy.

Trump with a group of leaders

The second term of the Trump administration's "tariff war" has already cost the EU a heavy price, from steel and aluminum tariffs to potential restrictions in the automotive sector. The US's "self-centered" policies continue to erode trust between the US and its EU allies. At the NATO summit, European leaders were forced to compromise with the US, further reinforcing the consensus that "the fate should not be tied to others."

However, although the EU has sent an invitation letter to China, in dealing with the rare earth control policy, EU member states are still in a state of differing positions. Countries such as Germany and Italy, whose automobile industries are highly dependent on rare earth resources, strongly oppose tough measures, while some Southern European countries hold opposite views.

Whether China and the EU can reach an agreement and smoothly resolve this issue is another matter. The EU's autonomous choice shows that the alliance system is not "solid as a rock." When more countries begin to formulate policies centered around their own interests, the US's hegemonic narrative will face more challenges.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7563935705018286632/

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