EU-China Archives

The European Parliament halted on Thursday (20 May) ratification of a new investment pact with China until Beijing lifts sanctions on EU politicians, deepening a dispute in Sino-European relations and denying EU companies greater access to China.

European trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said on Tuesday (4 May) that efforts to win approval for a proposed massive investment deal with China were effectively "suspended" after tit-for-tat sanctions were imposed by both sides.

Former European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker believes the European Union has to be "less naive" with China, saying that "Europeans have to organise their relations" better with other foreign powers.

The European Union called out China on Saturday (24 April) for endangering peace in the South China Sea and urged all parties to abide by a 2016 tribunal ruling which rejected most of China's claim to sovereignty in the sea, but which Beijing has rejected.

The Hungarian government is planning to build a Budapest campus of the Chinese Fudan University with Chinese contractors, financed by a €1.25 billion loan from China, it emerged this month. The controversial project has sparked a row between the Hungarian government and the municipality of Budapest. EURACTIV's media partner Telex takes a closer look.

President Xi Jinping told German leader Angela Merkel during a phone call that he hoped Europe would "make positive efforts with China", Chinese state media reported, following an international row over the treatment of Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang.

After Brussels moved to impose sanctions on China in March, Beijing retaliated by targeting four Lithuanian politicians among more than a dozen European diplomats and officials. Now, despite direct pressure on Lithuanian MPs, Vilnius is planning to recognise as genocide China's repression against Uighurs. EURACTIV's media partner LRT.lt reports.

The US and Europe have agreed to relaunch a bilateral dialogue on China and work together to address Russia's "challenging behavior," according to a statement from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the EU foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell.

France, Germany and other EU nations called in Chinese ambassadors on Tuesday (23 March) to protest at sanctions imposed by Beijing targeting their citizens, as China and Europe faced off over claims of rights abuses against China's Muslim Uyghur minority.

The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada imposed sanctions on Chinese officials on Monday (22 March) for human rights abuses in Xinjiang, the first such coordinated Western action against Beijing under new US President Joe Biden.

China on Monday (22 March) announced sanctions on 10 Europeans including politicians and scholars, as well as four entities, in retaliation against the EU's approval of measures over Beijing's crackdown on the Uighur minority.

China is deeply concerned over the EU's likely imposition of human rights sanctions on Chinese officials and its ambassador in Brussels warned the bloc on Tuesday (16 March) to "think twice" before engaging in confrontation, because China "will not back down". 

China approved its five-year goals on Thursday (11 March), but the world’s biggest polluter shows little ambition of moving away from fossil fuels, leaving much to be decided.

China’s parliament approved on Thursday (11 March) a draft decision to change Hong Kong’s electoral system, further reducing democratic representation in the city’s institutions and introducing a mechanism to vet politicians’ loyalty to Beijing. The measures are part of Beijing’s efforts …

The European Commission needs to have further discussions with Beijing and other trading partners about its upcoming carbon border levy, a senior Chinese diplomat said at a EURACTIV event on Thursday (28 January).

Despite a recent investment agreement reached with Beijing, there is still “much work to do” to rebalance the EU-China trade and overall economic relations, the European Commission said on Friday (29 January).

The European Commission said Wednesday (27 January) that Beijing knows it must deliver on labour commitments in an EU-China investment deal, rebuffing criticism that Brussels had given too much ground on rights.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday (25 January) in Davos called for a return to multilateralism, warning against a "new Cold War", and urged global unity in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The head of Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson, Bjorn Ekholm, is worried about Chinese reprisals after Sweden banned Huawei from taking part in the rollout of 5G networks, he said Monday (4 January).

Europe must be an autonomous global actor and it would be “a terrible sign” if the EU blocked a recently concluded investment agreement with China in order to coordinate with Washington, Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa told EURACTIV’s partner Lusa in an exclusive interview.

The EU and China agreed 'in principle' on Wednesday (30 December) to an investment deal that will give European companies greater access to Chinese markets and help redress what Europe sees as unbalanced economic ties. EU leaders and China's President Xi …

China pushed past the United States in the third quarter to become the European Union's top trade partner, as the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted the US while Chinese activity rebounded.

Over the course of the last two months, China has made an emissions-busting pledge, while Joe Biden’s victory in the US presidential race is likely to shift Washington’s climate policy.

Lithuania's new ruling coalition agreed on Monday (9 November) to commit their incoming government to support "those fighting for freedom" in Taiwan, threatening to hurt the small EU member's relations with China, a potential investor in its main port.