Let’s talk about the Taiwan issue again? The United States and Europe plan to restart dialogue on China issues next month

Routine dialogue between Europe and the United States on China issues has been suspended since President Trump returned to the White House. The South China Morning Post exclusively disclosed on the 7th that despite the recent deterioration in relations between Europe and the United States, the two sides are planning to restart the dialogue, which is expected to be held in the first week of December.

The EU-US China Dialogue is one of the platforms for the EU and the US to discuss issues of common concern related to China and exchange views on China's policies. The most recent one was the 7th Dialogue held in September 2024. South China Morning Post quoted multiple sources as saying that after Washington took the initiative to contact the two sides, the two sides began planning to restart talks.

It is understood that the US side is expected to be led by Allison Hooker, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs. The agenda of the meeting has not yet been finalized, but according to the US State Department, the last dialogue discussed Beijing's support for Russia, Taiwan, technology and human rights issues, as well as trade issues such as overcapacity, non-market economic behavior and economic coercion.

At the end of the seventh dialogue, the two sides promised to meet again in the first half of 2025. However, after Trump returned to the White House at the beginning of that year, the dialogue has not been held again. Washington's lack of interest in Europe's China policy in the past two years has puzzled Brussels. During the tariff negotiations with the United States, the EU once considered China issues as an area where the two sides could find consensus, but the United States rejected the vote.

Brussels is cautiously hoping that bilateral relations will improve after Trump's camp was defeated in the midterm elections. Brando Benifei, member of the European Parliament and chairman of the delegation on relations with the United States, also urged Brussels and Washington to mend relations after the U.S. election. He hoped that the new U.S. Congress would bring a "new start" to dialogue and cooperation between the two sides. He called for the resumption of a positive and ambitious agenda in areas such as restoring mutual tariff exemptions, strengthening aid to Ukraine, and deepening cooperation in critical minerals and semiconductors.