Devilish? EU-China relations after Trump’s tariffs surrender Europe to the despot Xi

Donald Trump has unleashed a trade tempest that has got the EU scrambling. His tariffs – 20 per cent on EU goods, 25 per cent on steel, aluminium, and cars – are a sledgehammer to Europe’s economy. But even worse, if Europe does not wake up, they may lead to making the EU China’s geopolitical vassal.

In 2023, the EU exported €503.8 billion to the US. Now estimates put more than €200 billion at risk.

Trump’s tariffs will hurt European companies like Volkswagen, BMW, Daimler and Stellantis in the auto sector, while steel and aluminium giants such as Thyssenkrupp, Voestalpine, Acerinox and Norsk Hydro face heavy blows. Beyond that, Airbus, Pirelli, luxury brands Hermès and Prada, chemical firms Covestro and Arkema, plus Carlsberg and Repsol brace for pain across diverse industries. And the list goes on.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen dubbed it a “major blow”, promising €26 billion in counter-tariffs on US bourbon and beef. Bold words, but not much compared to the EU’s exposure. This tit-for-tat could spiral into a trade war, leaving Europe’s economy bloodied.

Enter China, lurking like a vulture. With EU-US trade fraying, Beijing sees a golden chance to tighten its grip. Its €292 billion trade surplus with the EU in 2023 already dwarfs the US deficit. Trump’s 34 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods are redirecting cheap EVs, solar panels, and batteries to Europe. Local industries – especially Germany’s auto giants – are drowning in the flood.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz tiptoes around, terrified of losing Germany’s €250 billion China trade. “We can’t alienate Beijing,” a Berlin insider whined. Pathetic. Chinese firms are eating Europe’s lunch, and Scholz is too spineless to push back. Beijing is not just winning. It is cementing Europe’s dependency.

Politically, it is a mess. Trump’s tariffs split the EU wide open – Poland’s Donald Tusk calls them “stupid”, while France’s Emmanuel Macron chants “strategic autonomy”. Nationalist parties like Germany’s AfD and Italy’s Lega thrive in the chaos, while the Left embarks on a new anti-Americanism.

Then there is China’s $244.8 billion trade with Russia in 2024, practically financing Moscow’s war. “China’s not neutral on Ukraine”, points out analyst Alicia García-Herrero. Yet Brussels hesitates, too scared to look Xi Jinping in the eye. The EU’s paralysis is deafening – and damning.

Here’s the real scandal: the EU’s double standards. Brussels loves to wag its finger at Russia. But China? Xi is an authoritarian despot – Uyghur camps, Hong Kong, social credit system, no elections – yet the EU does not care. Why? Because China’s 55 per cent of green tech imports keeps the lights on. “We condemn Russia but bankroll China,” a Dutch MEP fumed. Pure hypocrisy.

The EU has got a narrow shot to break free. First, rebuild industry at home. Trump’s tariffs may end up showing that protectionism can work. Pump the €800 billion recovery fund into steel, tech and cheap energy. We need to make stuff again.

Second, diversify trade. Deals with India, Japan, or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, (ASEAN), could cut China’s green tech stranglehold. Australia has got rare earths – mine them, not Beijing’s.

Third, hit China where it hurts. Ban Huawei from 5G. Tighten investment rules to stop Beijing snapping up ports and tech. “China exploits our openness”, says Tobias Gehrke of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Stop being the nice guy who plays by the rules and ends up getting a raw deal.

Fourth and a prerequisite of all the above: align with the US where it counts. Trump is dead right about China’s trade tricks. Join his push for fair play, not Beijing’s rigged game. EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič’s US talks flopped, but he is not wrong: “Tariffs hurt everyone.” Work with Washington to box in China, not each other.

The elites won’t like it. German carmakers need China’s market and French wine producers fear losing Beijing’s cash. Scholz and Brussels cling to their globalist delusions, dreading Xi’s wrath. But the EU’s survival demands it. Trump’s tariffs are a brutal wake-up call. Leaning on hostile powers like China is suicide.

We are sleepwalking into full reliance on an authoritarian beast the EU pretends is not a threat. Friedrich Hayek warned Europe in 1946 in his book, “The Road to Serfdom”, about the perils of falling into the communist trap. The Old Continent rid itself fully of red oppression in 1990. Three decades later, the danger has returned in the form of dependency.

America and Russia get the sermon, Xi gets a pass. Enough. Ditch the dragon, tell the elites to get lost, and seize this chance. Return to cheap energy, stop the war against Russia and start producing again, or watch Europe sink. The clock is ticking.