World Politics: Coordination of US and European Policies toward China in the era of Great Power Competition: Wang Xiaowen

Journal of Contemporary World

The author is a professor at the School of International Relations, Beijing Language and Culture University

 August 2024

Summary

European Union is still a major great power in world Politics.  During Biden’s term, the US and Europe have stepped up their coordination of policies toward China, focusing on the economic, trade and technological fields, strengthening geopolitical and military security cooperation, and they also incorporated ideology into it, especially bundling human rights and values ​​with other issues, and implementing a comprehensive strategy to contain China.

At the same time, the US and Europe have obvious differences in their perception of China, differences in relationship positioning, differences in policy choices and differences in implementation. The ” America First ” principle and the Ukrainian crisis and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have caused the US and Europe to face some differences and contradictions.

The coordination of US and European policies toward China during the Biden administration has shown the characteristics of institutionalization, comprehensiveness and camp expansion, and the future direction is still uncertain. From the perspective of the trilateral relationship between China, the United States and the European Union, the overall development of China-EU relations is conducive to the balance and stability of the trilateral relationship between China, the United States and European Union , but at the same time, China must be vigilant against the challenges brought to the development of China-EU relations by the rise of EU protectionism.

The transatlantic relationship between the United States and Europe is the most complex, closest and most enduring alliance in today’s international relations, and has an important and far-reaching impact on the international landscape. Over the past half century, the relationship between the United States and Europe has undergone a profound evolution from the “special relationship” during the Cold War to the “partnership” after the Cold War.

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the establishment of the European Union, the global interests and strategic goals of the United States and Europe gradually diverged, and bilateral relations showed the 2 sided characteristics of coexistence of cooperation and conflict. As China’s international status has steadily risen, the United States and Europe have attached more and more importance to policy coordination toward China, and China-US-EU triangle relations have become one of the most influential trilateral relationships in today’s international landscape.

After taking office, the Biden administration has used US-EU coordination as an important tool for strategic competition with China. The depth, breadth and richness of the US-EU policy coordination toward China have reached an unprecedented level. In the later period of Biden’s tenure, the differences between the United States and Europe have increased, Europe has sought “strategic autonomy”, and China-EU pragmatic cooperation has ushered in new opportunities.

Main contents of the coordination of US and EU policies toward China

Economic, trade and technological issues are the focus of the coordination of US and European policies toward China. The two sides have reached a containment policy with the so-called “de-risking” as the goal.

In June 2021, shortly after Biden took office, the EU and the US established the Trade and Technology Committee (TTC), with the main objectives of expanding bilateral trade and investment, avoiding new trade barriers, cooperating in key areas such as technology, digital, and supply chains, supporting joint research and development, and jointly promoting compatible international standards.

Relying on the mechanism of the Trade and Technology Committee, the US and Europe have reached the following consensus on policy coordination toward China: in terms of economy, trade and investment, reduce dependence on China’s supply chain by enhancing “supply chain resilience”; in terms of technology and industry, maintain technological leadership and hinder China’s development by coordinating investment and export controls.

In April 2022, on the eve of the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that supply chains should be transferred to allies and partners through “friendly outsourcing” to reduce risks.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde echoed this and said that the Ukrainian crisis was a turning point. In March 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed the so-called “de-risking” concept, falsely claiming that the “Belt and Road” initiative and other mechanisms and institutions “led” by China are changing the existing international order. Given that “decoupling” from China is neither feasible nor in Europe’s interests, the EU should be committed to “de-risking” against the Chinese economy.

 In April, US President’s National Security Advisor Sullivan clearly expressed his recognition of the concept of “de-risking” and expressed the need to establish a safe and resilient supply chain. “De-risking” can be understood as a replica of the concept of “decoupling”. The United States and Europe have mainly taken the following measures:

First, strengthen supply chain resilience and sustainable supply of raw materials through legislation, such as the “European Economic Security Strategy”, “European Economic Security Package” and “Critical Raw Materials Act” promulgated by the European Union.

 Second, adopt protectionist policies that are beneficial to domestic technologies and industries, such as the United States launched the “Revitalizing American Manufacturing and Ensuring the Security of Critical Supply Chains Plan” to ensure the resilience of key industrial chains, and promote the return of semiconductor and clean energy manufacturing industries to the United States by signing the “Chips and Science Act” and “Inflation Reduction Act”.

Third, unite allies to reshape the global supply chain, such as Biden took the 2021 G20 Rome Summit as an opportunity to convene the “Global Supply Chain Resilience Summit” and seek to establish a US-led global supply chain through the US-EU Trade and Technology Committee and the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.