Von Der Leyen Cautions Against "Decoupling" From China

According to Reuters, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has warned of an increasingly "imbalanced" trade relationship between the EU and China but cautioned against the wisdom of "decoupling" economically from China.

• Von der Leyen, delivering remarks during the ongoing joint EU-French trip to China, said: "The EU is becoming more vigilant about protecting our interests and dependencies, ensuring level playing field."
• Von der Leyen: "I doubt decoupling from china is viable strategy, have to engage in de-risking."
• VDL's conciliatory comments may put the EU at odds with US measures designed to isolate Beijing and relieve economic dependence on China.
• VDL conceded that export controls, like those applied by the US, may be required to address the "leakage of sensitive technology that could be used for military purposes," but called for a "resumption of EU-China high-level economic and trade dialogue."
• As Macron did in an earlier bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, VDL called on China to refrain from supplying military equipment "directly or indirectly to Russia" and said the EU "stands firmly behind [Ukrainian] President Zelensky's peace plan."