The news that Qatar has temporarily halted its output of liquid natural gas has sharpened the focus on how the Iran war will affect Chinese energy security. What has received less attention is how the war will affect Chinese companies’ commercial entanglements in Iran.
Despite the framing in Western discourse of China as a key partner to Iran, the relationship isn’t necessarily water-tight. For example, a few of the projects ...
Category: Europe
EU Lawmakers Question Global Gateway’s Africa Spending as China Comparison Intensifies
The EU's answer to China's Belt and Road Initiative is facing new scrutiny from lawmakers at the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Global Gateway (GG), a program launched in 2021 to finance infrastructure in developing countries, was the focus of a new ...
French Advisers Urges EU Tariffs or Weaker Euro to Counter China
The European Union should consider either an unprecedented 30% across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods or a 30% depreciation of the euro against the renminbi to counter a flood of cheap imports, a French government strategy report said on Monday. Europe is ...
Italy, France and Germany to Lead EU Critical Materials Stockpiling Plan, Sources Say
By Pratima Desai and Julia Payne The European Union is pushing ahead with plans to stockpile critical materials, with Italy, France, and Germany set to take leading roles as the bloc moves to cut reliance on China, four sources with knowledge of the ...
Spanish Police Arrest Chinese Hair Salon Owner Accused of Financing Hamas
Spanish police have detained a 38-year-old Chinese national who owned a hair salon near Barcelona on suspicion of financing the militant group Hamas through about 600,000 euros ($714,960) in cryptocurrency transfers, regional police said on Friday. Investigators traced at least 31 crypto transactions from virtual ...
Xi Says China Seeks to Uphold UN-Based World Order
President Xi Jinping said Tuesday that China seeks to uphold the UN-based world order, in remarks as he met Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo in Beijing. His comments come after Donald Trump unveiled plans for his new "Board of Peace" this ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
China Seeks Deeper Maritime Ties With Malta in Central Mediterranean
China is keen to deepen cooperation with Malta in shipping and port logistics, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said on Thursday, eager to leverage the island's strategic location in the Central Mediterranean. In an economic and trade cooperation meeting in Beijing, the ministry also told ...
Why Greenland is the New Front in the U.S.–China Resource Rivalry
By Lukas Fiala After a showcase of U.S. military might in Venezuela, the longstanding back-and-forth about a potential U.S. intervention in Greenland continues apace. With President Trump announcing earlier this week that the U.S. would acquire Greenland “one way or ...
Japan, NATO Share ‘Grave Concern’ Over China, Russia Flights: Tokyo
NATO chief Mark Rutte and Japan's defence minister shared their "grave concerns" about recent joint patrols by Chinese and Russian aircraft, Tokyo said. The incident on Tuesday came as Japan-China relations worsen after comments by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about Taiwan ...
Macron Threatens China With Tariffs Over Trade Surplus
French President Emmanuel Macron said he has threatened China with tariffs if Beijing fails to take steps to reduce its massive trade surplus with the EU, in remarks published Sunday. "I told them that if they don't react, we Europeans will ...
German Foreign Minister to Visit China for Economic Talks
Germany's foreign minister heads to China this weekend for talks focused on tense economic ties between Europe and Beijing, particularly in the area of rare earths, Berlin said Friday. Johann Wadephul was originally supposed to pay his first visit to China ...
Macron Tells Xi China, France Must Overcome ‘Differences’
French President Emmanuel Macron told Xi Jinping that France and China must overcome their "differences" during their meeting in Beijing on Thursday. "Sometimes there are differences, but it is our responsibility to overcome them for the greater good," Macron told Xi ...
EU Says Must ‘Step up’ Against China Rare Earths ‘Racket’
The European Union must ramp up efforts to break its dependence on China for rare earths faced with export curbs that amount to a "racket" by Beijing, the bloc's industry chief Stephane Sejourne said Tuesday. China, the world's top producer of ...