Europe resists copying U.S. China policy

Europe’s top industry official just said the quiet part out loud: the European Union is not going to copy Washington’s China strategy, even while Brussels keeps adding trade defenses of its own. Stéphane Séjourné said on April 10 that Europe “won’t follow the U.S. on China” and still needs Chinese investment in some cases. (politico.eu) That sounds odd until you look at the numbers. In 2025, the European Union exported €199.6 billion in goods to China and imported €559.4 billion, leaving a €359.8 billion goods deficit. (ec.europa.eu) The imbalance got worse, not better. Eurostat said European Union exports to China fell 6.5 percent from 2024, while imports from China rose 6.4 percent, which means Europe became more exposed to Chinese goods last year even as it talked about reducing risk. (ec.europa.eu) Europe’s phrase for this is “de-risking,” not “decoupling.” The European Commission says the goal is to cut dangerous dependencies in critical supply chains while keeping trade and dialogue with China rather than trying to sever the relationship outright. (ec.europa.eu) That is already a different approach from the United States, which has leaned harder on broad restrictions, tariffs, and technology controls. Séjourné framed the American line as “isolationist” and argued that Europe’s economy still needs outside capital, including from China. (politico.eu) But this is not Europe going soft. The same Séjourné has pushed a “Made in Europe” industrial plan that would give European firms preference in strategic sectors and make it harder for foreign-backed companies to win public money or procurement contracts. (euronews.com) So the real European position is a split-screen policy. Brussels wants Chinese factories and money when they create jobs inside Europe, but it also wants barriers when cheap imports or state-backed competitors threaten European industry. (politico.eu) (euronews.com) That balancing act has been building for months. At the July 24, 2025 European Union-China summit in Beijing, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pushed China for a “more balanced” economic relationship instead of a break in ties. (eeas.europa.eu) (euronews.com) The problem for Europe is that China is both a market and a source of pressure at the same time. The European Commission lists China as the European Union’s third-largest export market and biggest source of imports, which makes a clean break far more expensive for Europe than political slogans suggest. (ec.europa.eu) So when European officials say they will not follow Washington, they are not rejecting tougher policy altogether. They are saying Europe wants a narrower strategy: protect steel, batteries, electric cars, and public contracts at home, but keep enough trade and investment flowing that the continent does not end up punishing itself. (politico.eu) (ec.europa.eu)