Europe Looks to 'De-Risk, Not Decouple' From Beijing.

"BRUSSELS -- Europe says it wants to push back against China's economic might. Its resolve faces an early test.

The European Union's executive body released an economic-security strategy that included a call for member states to consider new controls for European investment in other countries that might pose security risks. Although the document didn't name specific countries, officials have said it is aimed largely at reducing the risks in its economic relationships with China and Russia.

Europe has long taken an open and liberal approach to free trade and investment. But China's growing economic power is raising concern across the continent that it might be exposing itself to risks from a geopolitical rival. Now the bloc is looking for ways to curb those risks without abandoning a trade relationship valued at roughly $2.6 billion a day.

The strategy, laid out in a paper the EU published Tuesday, spells out some of the main economic risks officials believe Europe faces, including supply-chain disruptions and the use of European technology or knowledge for another country's military or intelligence purposes.

To address those risks, the EU strategy calls on member states to consider tools that, if implemented, could mark a significant shift in the bloc's approach to trade and investment. Those include the possibility of new controls on specific types of investments in other countries and more coordination of export controls for goods that can have both civil and military uses.

"We need to ensure that European companies' capital, their knowledge and expertise, their research, is not abused by countries of concern for military applications," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.

Whether member states, which would have to agree to such measures, are willing to back them remains uncertain.

Some diplomats have expressed concern that the commission is aligning itself too closely with the U.S. when it comes to trade relations with China. Von der Leyen, whose team has worked closely with the White House over Russia, released a joint statement with President Biden in March that floated the possibility of investment controls to protect European and U.S. companies.

Beijing has warned Europe not to take further steps that could undercut economic ties.

The strategy outlined by the bloc doesn't immediately change the EU's trade or security policies. It is intended to be a starting point for discussions among European countries ahead of a leaders' summit this month. Decisions might not come until 2024.

More than a year after events Ukraine began, Europe is joining the U.S. in making decisions about its relationship with China. European officials have expressed concern about Beijing's ties to Moscow and its push to exert global influence by funding infrastructure projects in developing countries and pursuing key positions in multilateral bodies.

They have marked out the bloc's dependencies in specific economic and technological sectors on Chinese trade, supply chains and raw materials." [1]

 Trying to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted?

1. World News: Europe Looks to 'De-Risk, Not Decouple' From Beijing. Kim Mackrael; Norman, Laurence. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 21 June 2023: A.9.