Brussels Watches Nervously As Trump Meets Xi Jinping

While Donald Trump sets foot in Beijing for a visit presented as “historic”, another battle is being fought far from the cameras: that of global industrial control. In Brussels, the meeting between the American president and Xi Jinping fuels growing concern. Behind the diplomatic smiles, Europe fears an agreement capable of reshuffling the cards of trade, technologies, and critical materials. Rare earths, supply chains, economic warfare: the Sino-American summit could accelerate Europe’s industrial downgrade.

Europe fears being sacrificed in the Sino-American dialogue

European officials are watching the Beijing summit “from behind the scenes” with fear of becoming the big losers of a possible compromise between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. Indeed, the European Union is being turned into “collateral damage” in a negotiation dominated by American and Chinese interests.

At the heart of concerns is the issue of rare earths, now essential for electric vehicles, semiconductors, batteries, and defense industries.

European concerns focus on several sensitive points :

• China controls a large part of the global rare earths supply chain ;
• German industries are already beginning to suffer from Chinese restrictions on some critical exports ;
• Brussels fears an agreement granting the United States privileged access to Chinese strategic resources ;
• European sectors such as automotive, defense, and advanced technologies appear particularly exposed ;
• The European Union risks losing further influence in future global trade negotiations.

Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing comes during a period of high global trade tension. Behind the political staging, Brussels fears above all concessions negotiated away from European eyes between the world’s two largest economic powers.

Beijing strengthens its lead in the global economic war

In an analysis, Thierry Breton estimates that “the great decoupling has begun”. The former European commissioner describes China as now being in a position of strength in the economic confrontation with the United States. He points out that Washington has made multiple strategic errors in recent years, particularly through aggressive customs policies with tariffs reaching nearly 18 %, an unprecedented level since the 1930s. China, an influential member of the BRICS alliance, has taken advantage of this situation to consolidate its industrial chains, secure its supplies, and circumvent certain American sanctions through third countries such as Vietnam or Mexico.

The analysis also reveals a deeper transformation of the global balance of power. The rivalry between Beijing and Washington is no longer limited to traditional trade; it now concerns industrial infrastructures, advanced technologies, and control of strategic resources. China appears as an actor capable of setting the pace in several key sectors, while Western economies struggle to reduce their dependencies. Thierry Breton emphasizes that Beijing now controls decisive levers in the global competition, from critical raw materials to international logistics chains.

This diplomatic sequence could accelerate European debates on industrial and technological sovereignty. Faced with a world structured around the balance of power between Washington and Beijing, Brussels is confronted with a central question: how to preserve its economic autonomy without possessing the same industrial and strategic levers as the two superpowers? The Beijing summit goes far beyond a simple bilateral meeting. It could mark a new stage in the global economic fragmentation and the lasting redistribution of power balances.