EU hesitant to confront China in joint trade plan with US.

The European Union and the United States have soft-pedaled criticism of China and Russia in a joint trade strategy at a meeting of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council. The EU-28 had balked at references to China in earlier drafts of the trade agreement, and the latest iteration omits any specific mention of Beijing, despite European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s “de-risking” stance. The newest version also avoids calling out China and Russia for “economic coercion” but does mention the problem.
 
The reworked language suggests EU nations are not yet willing to adopt the US’ increasingly hawkish approach to relations with China. Earlier drafts had called out “anti-competitive and harmful non-market policies and practices” and said the two sides should agree to align screening measures for outbound investments. France and Italy had pushed back against the references to China during internal meetings.
 
Meanwhile, some EU members were left unhappy that the language on outbound investment controls went beyond that agreed at the G7 summit. European negotiators eventually agreed to language in the talks that matched that agreed at the summit.
 
The trade council has convened to discuss tech issues such as telecom infrastructure, semiconductor subsidies, and electric-charging infrastructure. Representatives include US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and Trade Representative Katherine Tai, as well as EU Vice-Presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis and Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton.