(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) "Süddeutsche Zeitung" commented that Beijing's export control list is getting longer and longer, and the embarrassing situation of the European economy being highly dependent on China has become more obvious. If Europe cannot make up its mind to get rid of its "China addiction", its political and economic independence will become a joke. The commentary, titled "Europe Needs a Detoxification Course," reads:
"Beijing's export control measures have made Europeans painfully aware that they have been trapped in a permanent dilemma. On the one hand, the EU is using unprecedented unity and strength to jointly respond to the threat posed by the second round of China's shock wave to Europe's industrial base. The EU has restricted the import of Chinese hybrid vehicles, introduced a series of measures to protect other industries, and hopes to exclude relevant countries from the European single market when they are subjected to economic coercion.
But on the other hand, the European economy has become heavily dependent on China. It only takes Beijing a few days to bring Europe's production lines to a standstill. The rare earth export controls implemented last year have fully demonstrated China’s strength. Photovoltaic products play an important role in the energy transition and are key to reducing Europe's dependence on imported energy. But in the field of silicon wafer production and related supply chains, China controls 98%. The reason why the Chinese government wants to restrict the export of solar technology is to ensure their monopoly in this field.
The signals sent by Beijing further complicate European response strategies. This convincing deterrent method of excluding Chinese companies from the European market under certain circumstances seems to have begun to bear fruit: after the United States shut out most Chinese products, China urgently needs the European market to absorb its excess export products. By setting a cap on Chinese hybrid car imports, the EU finally got back on its feet. However, given the growing trade deficit between Europe and China, the cap on hybrid vehicle imports is only the beginning. As for whether China can also accept import caps in other fields, it is unknown. "
"Süddeutsche Zeitung" commented that in addition to continuing to adhere to the dual strategy of dialogue and deterrence against China, the EU also urgently needs to undergo a "withdrawal therapy" to get rid of its dependence on China, especially in the fields of rare earths and energy transformation technologies:
“Achieving diversification is the most difficult part of the EU’s China strategy: it is time-consuming and may be extremely costly; companies are required to no longer purchase from the lowest-priced suppliers, and costs will naturally rise; to strengthen control over the supply chain, local investment must be increased, and at the same time, the global demand for rare earths and green technology intermediate products is growing.
But Beijing’s pressure tactics can only be weakened by reducing reliance on China. Perhaps from an economic perspective, this is a losing business. But at a geopolitical level, it is an investment in the future of the EU’s autonomy. "
“Scientific research cannot be closed to the outside world”
After the exposure of the suspected information leakage of Cispa German Cybersecurity Center, how to strike a balance between German-Chinese scientific research cooperation and national security has triggered a heated discussion. "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" commented that ensuring national security is crucial, but we cannot close the country because of this:
"Unlike the United States, which has implemented a closed-door policy in the field of scientific research, the German government is very clear that Germany cannot do without cooperation with China not only in the economic field, but also in the field of scientific research. Thanks to huge capital investment, there is almost no suspense for China to become a world-class scientific and technological power by 2049.
Past experience shows that there are indeed some scientific researchers and institutions who have been negligent in their long-term cooperation with their Chinese counterparts and have leaked scientific research results. In view of this, the Helmholtz Research Consortium has established a specialized agency responsible for scientific research security to provide targeted consultation and protection for scientific researchers. The specific content involves confidentiality and export control. But this approach is not foolproof. For universities and professors, setting up such a security agency is an unrealistic idea simply because of cost considerations.
In view of this, after consulting with scientific research institutions that have been worried about government interference, and listening to the recommendations of the Scientific Committee, the German government established a national scientific research safety platform. The platform will not only conduct risk assessments on national security, but also provide consultation on specific scientific research cooperation plans. This platform not only guarantees cooperation with security agencies, but also ensures the freedom of scientific research without interference. The platform will be established by the Scientific Council, under the jurisdiction of the Federal Ministry of Scientific Research and funded by the federal government.
In the future, as long as it is expected to achieve outstanding scientific research results, Germany will still be willing to carry out basic scientific research cooperation with China with a highly open attitude. Of course, when it comes to sensitive areas such as drone manufacturing and drone defense, Germany prefers to avoid the risks brought by cooperation, which is obviously a sensible approach. "
