Charles Michel asks: ‘Where's the EU's China policy?'
Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz discussed trade last night in Germany, with Merz hinting a deal was in the offing. He also threatened to use the EU's 'trade bazooka' against the US if things really get nasty. Keep in mind that just a few weeks ago the conventional wisdom in the EU quarter was that Brussels could match the 10% deal Trump granted the UK.
Three EU diplomats told us a deal similar to the one Trump struck with Japan this week is currently on the table, minus the rice. The Commission, ever bluffing, claims to be arming its untouched arsenal of countermeasures, and countries will today vote to merge them into a single €93 billion package. The goal is to convince Trump not to impose a 30% tariff on the EU by 1 August.
Welcome to today's newsletter by Eddy Wax, with Nicoletta Ionta and our Euractiv team. You can email me feedback and tips.
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In this edition: Charles Michel talks China
A Ukraine MP hits back at Brussels' corruption warnings
Scoop: Commission revives equality law
Ambassadors land in Greenland
In the capital
An EU-China summit – originally supposed to have taken place in Brussels – kicks off in Beijing today, with the EU trio of Ursula von der Leyen, António Costa and Kaja Kallas representing the bloc. But don't hold your breath for any major outcomes or bold declarations on the sanctity of human rights. The EU's catch-all description of its relationship with China as a 'partner, competitor and systemic rival,' is a perfect illustration of its paralysis vis-à-vis the Asian juggernaut. The summit will produce no joint statement.
I spoke to former European Council President Charles Michel – now teaching at the China Europe International Business School – to ask his views on EU-China relations. 'It's not easy but we should try to be more precise in our demands towards China,' he said. 'When we say we want to rebalance the economic relationship, for instance, and to diversify our supply chains, we are right to express that wish – but we should be more precise".
"We need an in-depth political debate to clarify and to unite the European position on China,' he told me over the phone. The former EU leader said that the lack of a joint statement from today's summit was a sign that the EU needs to work harder to forge a common stance. 'For China it's also a clear message of strength when we are able to be united. If there is no intention to have a statement it could be seen as a weakness and this is regrettable".
EU countries were desperately at odds last year over a Commission move to put tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. The Baltic states and Poland are angered by China's support for Russia, Spain is freaked about tariffs on its gigantic pork sector, Czechia is concerned about cyberattacks, France worries about China retaliating on its spirits industry, and Germany just wants to keep selling cars, and exporting them from China.
"I'm not certain there is a European Union position on China,' Michel said. The only deliverable could be a joint statement on climate cooperation ahead of COP30 in Brazil later this year, which EU officials say will include further pledges on emission cuts.
Add to that, the EU itself is under massive pressure from the White House to follow its hawkish line on China, and von der Leyen, in the space of 2025, has flip-flopped in her messaging, from calling on the EU to 'seize the opportunity to engage' to accusing China of 'blackmail'.
"We should not accept that our relationship with China, or another country across the world, is influenced ... by other international players,' he said.
The former Belgian PM raised human rights on his 2022 trip to China to meet Xi Jinping. He reflected on how he brought up the topic of the Uyghurs, widely reported to be facing mass abuses in prison camps. 'It's important to do it in a way that does not lead to makes it impossible to discuss the other important points,' he said. "We have to find the right balance between promoting our values and defending our interests".
On Tuesday a Commission spokesperson rattled off all the areas of discussion for the summit – investment, trade, critical raw materials, climate – and didn't mention human rights. When asked if they would bring it up, the spokesman replied: 'I have no further elements to share at this stage".
Zelenskyy's U-turn
Ukraine's president has – at least on paper – relented on his crackdown on the country's anti-corruption bodies, saying last night that he will submit a new bill to the Rada to restore confidence in the rule of law. 'All the norms for the independence of anti-corruption institutions will be in place,' he said.
It comes after two days of street protests in Kyiv and criticism from many EU figures. Von der Leyen spoke directly to Zelenskyy. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and commissioners Michael McGrath, Marta Kos and Andrius Kubilius warned that bringing graft-busting under a prosecutor the Ukrainian president appointed would damage his country's aspirations to join the EU. The 'Merzcron' duo agreed last night to hold "intensive talks' with Zelenskyy on fighting corruption.
Dmytro Natalukha, a Ukrainian MP from Zelenskyy's party who chairs the Rada's Economic Affairs Committee, told Euractiv the whole thing was 'a bit over-dramatised' and 'has nothing to do with authoritarianism'. Asked why the EU has been so critical, he suggested the flap would give Brussels an excuse not to seize the Russian assets it has frozen. 'It's a power-play. Unfortunately, it's always about politics in the end,' he told my colleague Thomas Møller-Nielsen.
Reality-check: Ukraine has longstanding problems with corruption, and both Europe and the US have been complaining about the situation for years.
Niclas Herbst, a German MEP who chairs the EU Parliament's anti-fraud committee and visited Kyiv this week, told me that he thought the EU's political failure to advance Ukraine's bid to join the bloc was a contributing factor. 'Progress has been made,' said the MEP. 'This picture now is being destroyed by this coup-like way of having the new legislation.' He warned that the far-right in Europe is seizing on the "Ukraine is corrupt" narrative.
SCOOP: Commission revives Equal Treatment Directive
Months after it was nearly scrapped, an EU bill to harmonise national anti-discrimination laws is alive and kicking again. 'The Commission has decided to give the Equal Treatment Directive another go and push negotiations forward,' a Commission spokesperson told my colleague Magnus Lund Nielsen. The U-turn comes after the Parliament and 14 countries protested a move to withdraw it. It has been stuck for a whopping 17 years.
The directive aims to harmonise anti-discrimination laws on religion, disability, age, and sexual orientation. Denmark plans to push for renewed talks ahead of a December Council meeting even though Germany, Czechia and Italy remain holdouts.
Ambassadors brace for frosty reception in Greenland
Member states' top diplomats in Brussels embark on a four-day trip to Greenland today, led by the Danish presidency. The trip is a thinly-veiled publicity stunt to remind the Danes' European colleagues that they own the world's biggest island – at least for the time being.
Greenland's former premier, Aleqa Hammond, once ousted after misusing public funds, has made an unlikely comeback as the leader of social-democratic Siumut party. Having been a part of ruling coalitions for 41 out of the 46 years since Greenland obtained greater autonomy from Denmark in 1979, Siumut are part of the sitting pro-European coalition.
Hammond is tired of Danish and European officials showing up in her country and treating it as a photo-op. Most recently, Emmanuel Macron visited the capital Nuuk with Danish PM Mette Frederiksen. "It is as if the Greenlandic population is not present,' Hammond told Danish daily Politiken. 'Greenland is not something to be managed by others,' she said. 'It is time we take back control of the conversation."
There is speculation she might pull her party out of the coalition government, which could spell trouble for the EU's ambition to tap into the island's vast natural resources. 'No other decision has been made,' she told local media KNR.
"If Hammond pulls Siumut out of the coalition, the government might not collapse – but the foreign policy direction absolutely could,' said Rasmus Leander, professor of political science at University of Greenland.
Around the bloc
BERLIN | Germany has approved the sale of Eurofighter jets to Turkey, ending a long-standing veto that had stalled the deal. The move follows an agreement between Ankara and the UK and comes despite earlier human rights concerns and regional tensions with Greece. Read more.
PARIS | General Fabien Mandon, currently President Emmanuel Macron's Chief of Staff, has been appointed Chief of the Defence Staff of the French Armed Forces, replacing General Thierry Burkhard, Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced on Wednesday. A career army officer, Burkhard served in the role for four years and oversaw France's military build-up following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Mandon is the first air force officer in 30 years to take on the top military role.
ROME | Italy's Senate has unanimously passed a bill making the gender-motivated killing of women a separate crime, punishable by life in prison. Touted as Giorgia Meloni's most popular initiative, the bill now awaits final approval in the lower house. Read more.
MADRID | Spain's Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal by Santos Cerdán, a close ally of Pedro Sánchez who has become the focal point of a massive corruption investigation.
Cerdán argued his detention posed no risk to the investigation, but the court said his release could undermine the probe due to his 'leadership role' in an alleged criminal network involving rigged tenders, embezzlement, and influence peddling.
WARSAW | A prosecutor has charged far-right MEP Grzegorz Braun with seven offences. These include the widely condemned incident in December 2023, when he extinguished Hanukkah candles in the Polish parliament. On 17 July, Prosecutor General Adam Bodnar submitted a request to waive Braun's parliamentary immunity in the European Parliament.
BUCHAREST | After years of friction over minority rights in Transylvania, Hungarian and Romanian leaders met in Bucharest for informal talks. Initiated by Orbán, the meeting could signal a shift toward improved dialogue and regional stability. Read more.
Also on Euractiv
Von der Leyen broke staff appointment rules, EU court rules
The decision is adding scrutiny to von der Leyen's management style and the outsized role of her inner circle, particularly her head of cabinet Björn Seibert
The EU's second-highest court ruled on Wednesday that the European Commission breached its own rules in staff appointments, marking a legal setback for Ursula von der Leyen and her powerful right-hand man, Björn Seibert, as Elisa Braun reports.
EU countries are tightening rules to limit kids' access to social media, with new guidelines from Brussels allowing stricter national regulations. France, Spain, Greece, and Ireland are leading the way with various approaches, including age verification systems, digital wallets, parental consent requirements, and even a potential ban on minors using social media. Read more.
Sánchez stands alone as Europe toughens its migration discourse. Despite domestic pressure, Spain remains isolated in Brussels, favouring bilateral cooperation over large-scale deportations. The country's reluctance to align with EU hardliners is compounded by internal political divisions, with coalition partners holding opposing views, leaving Sánchez's government in a precarious position. Read more.
Belgium's honeybee population has seen a sharp 22.5% decline over the winter, alarming scientists and beekeepers, yet the broader picture of pollinator health in Europe is more complex. While the EU has expressed concern, political action remains limited, though a proposal for a "hazardous to bees" pictogram on pesticides may soon move forward. Read more.
Rising cases of mosquito-borne diseases in Europe are prompting renewed warnings from health experts. With warmer temperatures creating favourable conditions for mosquitoes, the spread of tropical diseases, particularly chikungunya, has been noted in countries like France and Italy. Global health experts are calling for urgent action. Read more.
Agenda
EU-China summit in Beijing with von der Leyen, Costa and Kallas
Member states' permanent representatives to the EU visit Greenland
French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu and German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius meet in Berlin
Entre nous
EPP lawmaker Dirk Gotink and ECR MEP Carlo Fidanza will lead a working group that will investigate alleged dodgy financing of NGOs, attached to the Parliament's budgetary control committee. Its work will start in earnest after the summer.
Austria's former chancellor, Karl Nehammer is back, this time as EIB Vice-President, thanks to a nod from all 27 EU finance ministers.
Contributors: Magnus Lund Nielsen, Thomas Møller-Nielsen, Nick Alipour, Alexandra Brzozowski, Catalina Mihai, Elisa Braun, Laurent Geslin, Alessia Peretti, Inés Fernández-Pontes, Aleksandra Krzysztoszek.
Editors: Matthew Karnitschnig, Sofia Mandilara.
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