Copenhagen seeks support for 90% emissions cut by 2040
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Euractiv
3 hours ago
- Euractiv
Chinese President Xi Jinping said China and the EU must deepen trust in a turbulent world, but the bloc's chiefs called for "real solutions" to move past an inflection point as they met in Beijing on Thursday.
China's leadership has sought to draw the European Union closer as it positions itself as a more reliable partner than the United States and a bedrock of stability in a troubled world. But the EU has made clear there are deep divisions over trade, fears that cheap, subsidised Chinese goods could overwhelm European markets and Beijing's tacit support for Russia's war against Ukraine. Though nominally intended to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic ties, the long list of grievances set the stage for a contentious summit. Welcoming European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council chief António Costa at Beijing's ornate Great Hall of the People, Xi said "the more severe and complex the international situation is, the more important it is for China and the EU to strengthen communication, increase mutual trust and deepen cooperation". In the context of that turmoil, Xi said, Chinese and European leaders must "make correct strategic choices that meet the expectations of the people and stand the test of history". "The challenges facing Europe at present do not come from China," he added. "There are no fundamental conflicts of interest or geopolitical contradictions between China and the EU," the Chinese leader said. In response, von der Leyen said "it is vital for China and Europe to acknowledge our respective concerns and come forward with real solutions". Ties had reached an "inflection point", she warned. Costa also stressed to the Chinese leader that the bloc wanted to see "concrete progress on issues related to trade and the economy, and we both want our relationship to be... mutually beneficial". Brussels had acknowledged the talks between its top bosses and Chinese President Xi and Premier Li Qiang later Thursday would be tense. "We know that we don't see eye to eye with China on many issues," a senior EU official told AFP last week. "But we believe that it is essential to have this kind of very direct and open and constructive conversation sitting at the table at the highest level." 'Not naive' Top of the agenda for the EU is the yawning trade deficit with China that stood at around €324 billion last year and which von der Leyen has described as 'unsustainable'. Beijing has dismissed those concerns, insisting that Brussels must "rebalance its mentality", not its economic ties with China. Brussels will also demand that China eases market access for European companies and loosens export controls on strategically crucial rare earths, von der Leyen has said. The EU has imposed hefty tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, arguing that Beijing's industrial subsidies unfairly undercut European competitors. China has rebuffed that claim and announced what were widely seen as retaliatory probes into imported European pork, brandy, and dairy products. A second key source of friction is Russia's war in Ukraine – Brussels says China's deepening political and economic relations with Russia since the 2022 invasion represent tacit support for Moscow that have helped its economy weather sweeping Western sanctions. Meeting Xi on Thursday, Costa urged China to "use its influence" on Russia to help end Moscow's "war of aggression". Last week, the bloc adopted a new package of sanctions on Russia over the war – including on two Chinese banks, leading Beijing's commerce minister to issue 'solemn representations' to his EU counterpart. "This is a core issue for Europe," the senior EU official said. "We're not naive. We're not asking China to cut relations, but to step up the customs and financial controls." (vib)
Euractiv
4 hours ago
- Euractiv
EU approves €93 billion US counterstrike as hopes of trade deal grow
EU countries overwhelmingly approved retaliatory tariffs targeting €93 billion worth of US goods on Thursday, as the bloc seeks to pile pressure on Washington to agree a trade deal that would lower Donald Trump's threatened blanket levy from 30% to 15%. All member states except for Hungary voted in favour of the European Commission's proposed list, which would hit a wide range of American goods, including aircraft, cars, wine, and medical and electrical equipment. The duties will enter into effect on 7 August if no deal is agreed. The €93 billion list comprises two previously separate packages that Brussels merged earlier on Wednesday to make its US countermeasures 'clearer, simpler, and stronger', as the bloc races to strike an agreement with Washington before Trump's 30% tariff on EU goods enters into force on 1 August. The US president has already imposed a 50% tariff on steel and aluminium, a 25% duty on cars and car parts, and a 10% baseline levy that currently affects €370 billion worth of EU goods, or 70% of the bloc's total exports to the US. Brussels has not previously retaliated against Trump's tariffs. Thursday's vote also comes amid growing expectations that the EU could strike a deal similar to the one Washington recently agreed with Japan, which left a 15% baseline in place. The deal also lowered the US car tariff for Japanese automakers to 15% but left the 50% metals duties in force. EU diplomats believe the 15% baseline would include the 4.8% average duty faced by EU exports prior to Trump's return to the White House in January, thus effectively leaving the status quo in place. Trump's 10% blanket tariff comes on top of the 4.8% levy. In addition to the €93 billion package, the Commission is also preparing a separate list targeting US services, a senior Commission official told MEPs last week. One person familiar with the matter said the package, which again would only be imposed if no deal is agreed, would include export controls and restrictions on US firms' access to Europe's public procurement market. (mm)
Euractiv
5 hours ago
- Euractiv
Commission revives anti-discrimination directive after 17-year standstill
A directive to enshrine anti-discrimination rules into EU and national law is being resurrected after 17 years of political limbo and threats of withdrawal. The Equal Treatment Directive would instruct EU countries to implement national laws addressing anti-discrimination and ensure equal access to social rights, education, goods and services, and protection on grounds of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation. The bill, which was originally presented in 2008, has been stuck in the Council for nearly two decades, and the European Commission signalled earlier this year that it intended to scrap it altogether. Now, as first reported by Euractiv, the Commission has reversed its decision, saying it "has decided to maintain for further political discussion the proposal for the Equal Treatment Directive," a Commission spokesperson said on Wednesday. Back and forth In its 2025 work programme released early this year, the Commission listed the proposal amongst legislation the executive was looking to scrap, citing that "the proposal is blocked and further progress is unlikely." In May, however, Equality Commissioner Hadja Lahbib told dismayed lawmakers in the Parliament's civil liberties committee that the Commission would take feedback from MEPs into account. While the Parliament's political leaders endorsed the Commission's plans to withdraw, the committee chairs in June urged the executive to keep it alive. A month later, 14 EU countries signed a letter, asking the Commission to drop its plans to withdraw the proposal. Eventually, the Commission budged and is now keeping the directive on the agenda, "having considered the supportive position expressed by the Parliament and by a large majority of member states in the Council," a Commission spokesperson told Euractiv. "We will therefore redouble our efforts in supporting the [Danish] presidency and the member states with all possible means to help find an agreement on this important proposal." Movement in December The Danish presidency is expected to bring the issue to the agenda when EU employment and social ministers meet in early December. "We will do our best to bring progress and continue bilateral consultations with the countries still opposed," Danish Minister of Social Affairs, Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, told MEPs in the Parliament's employment committee last week. A February briefing from the Parliament's research service suggests that many EU countries have improved their legislation in the 17 years that have passed since the original proposal. Germany, Czechia, and Italy are understood to be the three main holdouts in the Council. Parliamentarians have been celebrating the U-turn, taking credit for it. "Thanks to progressive political forces refusing to accept the Commission's idea of withdrawing the legislation, we managed, after much persistent lobbying, to get the Commission to change its mind," Green Swedish lawmaker Alice Bah Kuhnke told Euractiv. "It is a result of months of hard work from myself and fellow negotiators," centre-right MEP Maria Walsh wrote on her website. (mm)
