Brussels does not follow US sanctions against China: ‘Interests stand in the way’
The EU does not follow the ban on US investments in the Chinese technology sector. “The national interests of member states get in the way,” Europe correspondent Stéphane de Vries explains.
The sanctions that the United States wants to impose mainly relate to developments in China in the field of artificial intelligence and quantum technology. Americans who want to invest in it must first get an agreement from the White House before the money can go to China. However, the standards are too high in order to thwart Chinese opportunities in the technology sector.
“People weigh a realistic approach that is beneficial for the European economy as well as for security”
De Vries explains that the fact that the EU is not following suit is mainly due to bureaucratic reasons. The simple answer is that we are 27 member states, not one Joe Biden. There are different ideas within the European Union, that not only the member states have the same attitude towards China. However, the attitude of the European Union as a whole has “hardened” towards China. “But different national interests stand in the way.”
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intertwined economies
However, work is underway on a single European line opposite China. “It is not realistic to detach completely from China,” predicts de Vries. “The two economies are intertwined and we depend on each other for many things.” The line reached now is that “we need China, but we also need to de-risk.”
But clarifying this issue is “a topic that politicians in Brussels and other European capitals are struggling with,” says the European correspondent. “There is a trade-off between a realistic approach that is beneficial to the European economy, and also to security.”
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