Europe’s Contested Deal With China Sends Warning to Joe Biden
- Critics say Europe should have coordinated with U.S. on China
- EU government officials say the bloc must be more assertive
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After more than seven years of negotiation with Beijing, the European Union’s landmark deal with China landed with a thud. Ill-timed, unenforceable and naive were just some of the charges leveled at the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment concluded Dec. 30.
Now, after a week of relative silence, governments are fighting back at criticism they see as unfair. Interviews with government officials in Europe’s main capitals showed a common conviction that the deal not only contains real concessions by Beijing, but that it puts the EU on a stronger footing to reengage with Washington after four years of antagonism by U.S. President Donald Trump.