De Chinese Wouden, vrijdag 27 juni: aardmetalen, Xi, Iran
Fijn weekend aan iedereen de de afgelopen week(en) in touw is geweest voor de NAVO-top. De Chinese ambassade in Den Haag was niet blij met wat Rutte zei.
In Brussel is alle focus op de toegang tot zeldzame aardmetalen uit China, zeggen SCMP en Bloomberg, nadat Reuters dit eerder al schreef. Dat dit hét onderwerp is tot de top in Peking is aan de ene kant winst voor China, omdat het nu dus niet meer over de andere probleem kan gaan. Aan de andere kant is het onvoorstelbaar, dat Peking de kansen die Trump bood aan China in Brussel niet heeft gegrepen.
Zeldzame aardmetalen zijn het doelwit van versterkte controle ook binnen China. Chinese experts zouden volgens WSJ hun paspoorten moeten inleveren om technologieoverdracht naar het buitenland te voorkomen. Nikkei Asia schrijft dat de anticorruptiedienst actief is in regio’s met zeldzame aardmetalen.
India wacht nu al een volgende uitdaging. Volgens berichten in The Economic Times zou China de uitvoer van kunstmest beperken. Peking lijkt niet per se de behoefte te voelen om nieuwe vrienden te maken.
Woensdag schreef ik over de geruchten over Xi Jinping. Onderzoek van het onvolprezen China Media Project laat zien, dat Xi helemaal niet zo uit de kranten is verdwenen. Ik wijs dan ook op het feit dat: (i) veel sociale media verdienen aan ongegronde geruchten en dat (ii) Xi in zijn derde termijn met eigen mensen op alle plekken met meer vertrouwen durft te delegeren.
De Amerikaanse aanval op Iran blijkt te hebben gediend als bewijs dat zelfs de zwaarste en meest moderne wapens niet afdoende zijn. Peking zal niet zoveel baat hebben bij deze verzwakking van de VS. Het is namelijk ook duidelijk geworden dat alle retorische Chinese steun voor Iran weinig praktische hulp biedt. Bovendien liet de aanval wel zien dat zelfs onder Trump Washington nog bereid is om overzees in te grijpen.
Volgende week ben ik in Berlijn voor het European China Talent Programme (ECTP) van MERICS. Maandag komt de nieuwsbrief volgens schema. Woensdag en vrijdag is er waarschijnlijk geen nieuwsbrief.
Nederland en Europa 🇳🇱🇪🇺
Dutch envoy Guido Tielman ends Taiwan stint, highlights closer bilateral ties – Focus Taiwan 🇳🇱
Confessions of a Huawei lobbyist – Euractiv: ‘In his testimony, Valerio O. alleged that Huawei was able to exert influence in certain national delegations within EU institutions more easily than in Brussels.’ 🇪🇺
Huawei-lobbyist doet boekje open: „Er zijn Europarlementsleden die ruiken wanneer er geld te verdienen valt” – De Standaard: „O. vertelt aan zijn ondervragers hoe hij in 2020 de Europese besluitvorming had proberen te manipuleren in het voordeel van zijn werkgever Huawei met de zogenoemde 5G-brief.”
„De speurders achterhaalden de voorbije maanden dat er effectief geld is gevloeid van Huawei naar Martusciello, zij het onrechtstreeks.” 🇪🇺
Lauwe reactie op Chinese cyberspionage in Europa is ‘strategisch risico’ – FD 🇪🇺
From blacklist to backchannels: inside the European Parliament’s unlikely China reset – SCMP: ‘The extent of the detente is revealed in previously unseen correspondence obtained by the South China Morning Post and conversations with parliament insiders’
‘China, on the other hand, is making up for lost time. Brussels is awash with rumours of an expansion of the already sizeable mission’s headcount, as it looks to capitalise on an open door in the parliament.
Multiple sources told the Post, meanwhile, that a delegation from the NPC would be in Brussels next week to try to re-establish ties with their counterparts.’
‘With the overall EU-China reset seeming to be stalled, some in Brussels wonder if Beijing may start to feel buyer’s remorse.’ 🇪🇺
Finbarr Bermingham heeft twee brieven online gezet op LinkedIn.
China-EU relations: rare earths and Taiwan discussed in Wáng Yì 王毅’s visit to embassy – SCMP: ‘during a gathering at the Polish embassy, before Poland’s rotating presidency of the [Council of the EU] comes to an end’ 🇪🇺
Chinese foreign minister Wáng Yì 王毅 meets envoys from EU and member states – Xinhua: ‘Wang put forward a three-point proposal for the future development of China-EU relations.’
1. mutual respect (Taiwan!)
2. partner, not rival or enemy
3. multilateralism 🇪🇺
European prosecutors crack down on fraudulent Chinese imports – POLITICO Europe: ‘The goods in the scheme were mainly brought in through the Piraeus Port in Greece, investigators said.’ 🇬🇷🇪🇺
Chinese agents surveilled Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim 蕭美琴 during 2024 trip, Czech officials confirm – Focus Taiwan: ‘Czech Military Intelligence learned that their Chinese counterparts attempted to create conditions to carry out a demonstrative incident involving Hsiao, which “did not go beyond the preparation stage,” agency director Petr Bartovský told Czech Radio in a report Thursday.’ 🇨🇿
Chinese and French legislative bodies pledge to strengthen ties – Xinhua: ‘China’s top legislator Zhao Leji and Yael Braun-Pivet, speaker of the French National Assembly, co-chaired a meeting in Beijing on Thursday’ 🇫🇷
China and Europe look to strengthen cooperation on ESG promotion – Xinhua: ‘Initiated by the Chinese General Consulate in Frankfurt and co-organized by Xinhuanet and other Chinese and German organizations, the second Sino-European Corporate ESG Best Practices Conference’ 🇩🇪
Economic Watch: Sino-German cooperation deepens in smart manufacturing – Xinhua: ‘the Sino-German Smart Manufacturing Matchmaking Conference held from Tuesday to Thursday in Hefei, east China's Anhui Province’ 🇩🇪
Documentary ‘Xi Jinping’s Cultural Story’ premieres on major Italian media – Xinhua 🇮🇹
Chinese human rights delegation visits Hungary, deepens dialogue – Xinhua 🇭🇺
The war between Israel and Iran war has revived Chinese leaders’ interest in a pipeline that would carry Russian natural gas to China – WSJ: ‘The Power of Siberia 2 pipeline project has been mired in disagreements over pricing and ownership terms, as well as Chinese concerns about relying too heavily on Russia for its energy supplies.’ 🇷🇺
Chinese foreign minister holds talks with Armenian counterpart – Xinhua 🇦🇲
China, Britain experts deepen green finance cooperation with new work stream – Xinhua 🇬🇧
Wereldhandelsoorlog 📉💥
Antwoord op vragen van het lid Rep over het artikel ‘Brussel wil belasting van €2 op goedkope pakketjes uit China’ – staatssecretaris van Financiën Oostenbruggen (NSC), Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal: „Het kabinet is […] positief over de introductie van een dergelijke handling fee.” 🇳🇱
Oscar Hundman van bol.com: „Europa moet voorkomen dat iedereen zomaar van alles hier kan verkopen” – NRC: „Voor het eerst zet het concern de deur open voor verkopers van buiten de Europese Unie. Ook Chinese verkopers kunnen voortaan bij bol terecht.” 🇳🇱
Rare earths ‘THE thing’ for EU agenda planners ahead of China leaders’ summit – SCMP: ‘have leapfrogged the EU’s medley of other complaints with China to become the dominant issue in a troubled relationship. The issue has helped to disrupt an apparent thaw in ties’ 🇪🇺
The EU wants China to resolve the current shortage of rare earth magnets before a meeting of their leaders next month, according to the bloc’s top envoy to Beijing – Bloomberg: ‘Trade and economic relations are “not very bright,” Toledo said’ 🇪🇺
2025/06/19: Rare earth access is the European Union’s priority at China summit – Reuters: ‘Two EU sources said the EU mission to China is solely focused on rare earths until the summit.’ 🇪🇺
China has begun issuing rare earth export licences to European firms, EU sources say – SCMP 🇪🇺
China has told companies in its rare-earth industry to give the government lists of employees with technical expertise, aiming to ensure they don’t divulge trade secrets to foreigners – WSJ: ‘One of the people said some experts at Chinese companies have been asked to turn in their passports to their companies or local authorities, to ensure they don’t make any unauthorized trips.’
China antigraft crackdown targets rare-earth producing areas – Nikkei Asia
Siemens Gamesa and Chinese magnet suppliers discuss European production, COO says – Reuters: ‘has already taken steps to diversify away from China, including a deal earlier this week under which it will get permanent magnets from Japan’s TDK.’ 🇩🇪
How red tape amplified China’s rare earth disruptions – Nikkei Asia: ‘“It surprised the bureaucracy in Beijing,” said Nabeel Mancheri, a founder of the Brussels-based Global Rare Earth Industry Association. “They didn’t think it could be so much work. What I hear from the Chinese side is that it was even a shock for themselves.”’
‘Internal politics have also been playing a role, according to one person familiar with the matter. China’s various government agencies have been at odds over how to implement the measures, the source said, with the security apparatus more reluctant to grant foreign companies export licenses in order to retain greater bargaining power with the U.S. government.’
‘“I don’t believe this was all ‘Shucks, we didn’t think about automotive,’” the source said. “This was all planned in a way to bring maximum pressure on the White House.”’
Het is natuurlijk ook waarschijnlijk, dat hogerop doorhad dat dit de gevolgen zouden zijn lager in de bureaucratie.
VS-China 🇨🇳
The US and China have finalised a trade understanding reached last month in Geneva, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said – Bloomberg 🇺🇸
Trump says US signed agreement with China, offering no details – SCMP 🇺🇸
US-China trade deal near? Harvard scholar Graham Allison hints at progress in ‘very intense’ talks – SCMP 🇺🇸
US demand for China-made goods ebbs on tariff worries; ocean shipping rates drop – Reuters 🇺🇸
Exclusive: US allows ethane to be loaded and shipped to China, but not unloaded, letter says – Reuters: ‘The letters may signal the U.S. preparing to lift restrictions imposed on exports to China in late May and early June’ 🇺🇸
VS-wereld 🌏
After magnets, China now plants agriculture barrier for India – The Economic Times: ‘China has halted shipments of specialty fertilisers used to increase the yields of fruits, vegetables and other remunerative crops to India for the last two months, according to top executives of several large importers. China, a global supplier of agricultural inputs, continues to export them to other nations.’ 🇮🇳
Trump tariffs shine spotlight on Chinese targeting Southeast Asian consumers – Nikkei Asia
Techoorlog 💽💥
ASML commits to developing even more advanced chipmaking tools – Nikkei Asia: ‘already working to develop the next generation of cutting-edge lithography machines to serve the chip industry in the next decade, the company’s executive vice president of technology told Nikkei Asia.’ 🇳🇱
Van spionage verdachte ex-ASML-ingenieur kreeg „substantiële geldbedragen” na bezoeken aan Rusland – NOS 🇳🇱🇷🇺
Exclusive: BYD 比亚迪 slows production and delays capacity expansion at China factories, sources say – Reuters
China’s top lawmakers review first report on new tech-driven growth model – SCMP: ‘its first themed report to the top legislature on “new quality productive forces”’
China’s top legislator Zhào Lèjì 赵乐际 stresses legislative guarantees for new quality productive forces – Xinhua
The US is failing its green tech ‘Sputnik moment’ – Alan Beattie for FT: ‘for an array of green technologies, notably batteries and electric vehicles, the US seems content to shrug and let China win.’ 🇺🇸
Blocking strategic rivals from tech and resources may not work, says Singapore PM Lawrence Wong 黄循财 on US-China ties – The Straits Times: ‘PM Wong expressed confidence that China can find a way to get around the restrictions placed on it.’ 🇸🇬
Singapore en Maleisië zijn beide belangrijk doorvoerhavens voor technologie uit de VS naar China. Door zulke omzeiling worden de ‘blocking strategies’ zonder innovatie ook al minder effectief. DeepSeek was hier bijvoorbeeld ook van afhankelijk.
Cabinet outlines central Taiwan tech plans – Taipei Times
Taiwan electronics suppliers drive record Japan investment – Nikkei Asia 🇯🇵
Kantelpunt 🌏⏱️
Speech by His Majesty King Willem-Alexander at the dinner on the eve of the NATO Summit, Huis ten Bosch Palace, The Hague – Koninklijk Huis 🇳🇱
Defence spokesperson opposes NATO using China as excuse to expand eastward – Xinhua: ‘In recent years, NATO has overstretched its geographic boundary stipulated by its own Treaty, and expanded its power and authority, arousing high vigilance among countries in the region, he said.’
China never supplied weapons to parties in the Ukraine war, foreign ministry says – Reuters
Response of the Spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the Netherlands on Erroneous Remarks Related to China Made by NATO Secretary General at NATO summit in The Hague: ‘The relevant remarks by the NATO Secretary General contain a load of biases, smears and provocations.’ 🇳🇱
European common debt is the way to topple the dollar – Martin Sandbu for FT: ‘If [European leaders] don’t [grasp the huge strategic opportunity], others — especially China — are ready to boost alternatives to both the dollar and the euro.’ 🇪🇺
China hosts Iranian and Russian defence ministers against backdrop of ‘momentous change’ – AFP: ‘Beijing has long sought to present the 10-member Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a counterweight to Western-led power blocs’ 🇮🇷🇷🇺
India says SCO defence gathering in China unable to adopt joint statement – Reuters: ‘due to a lack of consensus on referring to “terrorism”’ 🇮🇳
Chinese foreign minister Wáng Yì 王毅 meets Harvard professor Graham Allison – Xinhua: ‘Wang said Chinese people value harmony without uniformity, which is fundamentally different from the Western zero-sum mindset.’ 🇺🇸
Weekend 🏖️📚
Achtergrond en longreads
Quest for strategic autonomy? Europe grapples with the US-China rivalry – European Think-tank Network on China 🇪🇺
The world wants China’s rare earth elements – what is life like in the city that produces them? – The Guardian: ‘Although the technologies to process rare earths in less environmentally harmful ways exist in theory, they are rarely used because of cost.’
The trade-offs of innovating in China in times of global technology rivalry – Jeroen Groenewegen-Lau and Jacob Gunter for MERICS: ‘European openness is taken advantage of while Beijing strategically incentivizes foreign technology providers to enter China while limiting technology outflows where China is on the cutting edge.’ 🇪🇺
China’s sanctions gambit: Formal and informal economic coercion in the second trade war – Swedish National China Centre
Chinese organised crime front serves Beijing’s interests, investigation shows – The Washington Post: ‘Wan’s deputies, several of whose roles are being identified for the first time, have expanded Hongmen’s footprint in the past five years largely unimpeded’
DeepSeek 深度求索’s democratic deficit –
Europe’s fragmented China expertise: Toward strategic integration – lessons from Germany, the UK, and France – Stefan Messingschlager for SOAS China Institute: ‘Europe’s patchwork of national China expertise weakens its collective strategy, creating opportunities for Beijing to exploit internal divisions.’
Voor mij blijft een terugkerend punt dat je weinig mogelijkheden hebt voor specialisatie en diepgang, wanneer iedere EU-lidstaat met haar beperkte middelen eigen China-experts moet hebben die het hele land in al zijn facetten behandelen.
How to hide a Chinese empire – John Delury for China Books Review
Podcasts
How Taiwan’s mass recall movement is reshaping politics – CommonWealth Magazine’s Taiwanology 🍎
Overige
China buitenland en defensie
Chinese envoy to UN calls for return to political settlement of Iran nuke issue – Xinhua 🇺🇸🇮🇷🇮🇱
US started Iranian nuclear crisis, Chinese envoy says – Xinhua: ‘Iran’s sincerity in resolving the nuclear crisis should be valued, said the Chinese ambassador.’ 🇺🇸🇮🇷
China pledges all-out support for Taiwan compatriots stranded in Israel-Iran conflict – Xinhua 🇹🇼🇮🇷🇮🇱
US strikes on Iran force China to reconsider Donald Trump’s isolationism – FT: ‘But analysts and US and Taiwanese officials said the attack on Iran would prompt a sweeping rethink among Chinese President Xi Jinping’s foreign policy advisers of how Trump might act on issues Beijing sees as vital to its national interest, such as Taiwan.’ 🇺🇸🇹🇼
China group likely used Japan to ship fentanyl chemicals, according to Nikkei investigation – Nikkei Asia: ‘The contents of Nikkei's investigation were independently confirmed by European investigative organization Bellingcat’ 🇯🇵🇺🇸
China urges Philippine military to refrain from ‘malicious accusations’ over drugs trade – AFP 🇵🇭
Senior CCP official meets Vietnam’s minister of justice – Xinhua 🇻🇳
UK and Australia conduct freedom of navigation operation in South China Sea – The Diplomat 🇬🇧🇦🇺
Chinese energy firms say Brazil must clarify regulations or face loss of investments – SCMP 🇮🇳
Taliban cancel oilfield deal with Chinese in Afghanistan’s north – Nikkei Asia: ‘due to alleged violations of contractual obligations, with some experts believing the move to be a sign of the economic difficulties the Kabul regime faces.’ 🇦🇫
China’s collateral demands curb emerging countries’ ability to manage finances, study shows – Reuters: ‘“Our research reveals a previously undocumented pattern of revenue ring-fencing where a significant share of commodity export receipts never reach the exporting countries,” said Brad Parks, executive director of the AidData research lab.’
Pacific Islands delay security plan that could open door to China – Reuters
China and Interpol to enhance cooperation for universal security – Xinhua
Exposed Undersea: PLA Navy officer’s reflections on China’s not-so-silent service – CIMSEC: ‘three PLAN officers revealed that the peacetime operations of Chinese submarines are highly vulnerable to the U.S. Navy’s undersea surveillance system’
China economie
Premier Lǐ Qiáng 李强 says China can turn consumption into a driver for the economy, while also casting his nation as a stabilising force in a rapidly shifting global trade landscape – Bloomberg: ‘Policymakers were growing the nation “into a mega-sized consumer powerhouse on top of its solid foundation as a manufacturing power,” Li said in a speech at the World Economic Forum’s meeting in Tianjin on Wednesday.’
China’s premier Lǐ Qiáng 李强 vows to ‘open its doors wider’ to trade and tech industry – FT: ‘said China would make its technological advances available to other countries’
Chinese vice premier Liú Guózhōng 刘国中 stresses importance of agricultural and rural development – Xinhua
China’s political advisors urged to support and engage in economic reforms – Xinhua
China’s central bank doubles down on financing support to boost consumption – SCMP: ‘China’s central bank listed several key sectors it aims to support, including retail, hotels, restaurants, sports, entertainment and tourism.’
China’s finance minister Lán Fó'ān 蓝佛安 warned emerging countries are running short of money to spend on cross-border infrastructure – Bloomberg: ‘Lan said a key issue at the moment is how to “stimulate the potential” of private investment’
China binnenland
Is Xi’s grip holding? – China Media Project: ‘Despite speculation about the waning media presence of China’s top leader, our study of headlines in the People’s Daily suggests his dominance remains largely intact.’
China’s top prosecutor vows crackdown on torture in rare admission – AFP: ‘The SPP announced on June 24 the creation of a new investigation department to target judicial officers who “infringe on citizens’ rights” through unlawful detention, illegal searches and torture to extract confessions.’
China’s top procuratorate establishes investigation department to curb abuse of judicial power – Xinhua
China, reeling from floods, braces for second tropical cyclone in two weeks – Reuters
China’s Guangxi deluged by flood-waters from upstream province – Reuters
Chinese lawmakers mulls law to improve public health emergency reporting system – Xinhua
Dit werkte dus niet zo goed in december 2019/januari 2020.
In Depth: China’s shift toward splitting criminal cases has scholars worried about judicial impartiality – Caixin Global
Hong Kong
Hong Kong lawmakers pass national security amendments to labour union laws – HKFP
League of Social Democrats, one of Hong Kong’s last pro-democracy groups, to disband, source says – HKFP
Taiwan buitenland en defensie
Former coast guardsman indicted for alleged espionage for China – Focus Taiwan: ‘was working at the Kaohsiung-based Southern Sector Flotilla when he was allegedly recruited by Chinese intelligence in September 2022’ 🇨🇳
China waives travel permit fees for 1st-time Taiwanese visitors – Nikkei Asia 🇨🇳
2025 Han Kuang to combine civilian drills and war of attrition, sources say – Focus Taiwan: ‘will be combined with newly launched Urban Resilience Exercises this year to test the country’s whole-of-society capability’
Defence minister highlights grey-zone response, HIMARS deployment in drills – Focus Taiwan
Taiwan’s defence minister says this year’s Han Kuang military drills will involve largest reservist call-up – AFP
Navy says submarine delivery on schedule – Taipei Times
Learning from Ukraine and Israel, Taiwan to issue new air-raid guidance – Reuters 🇺🇦🇮🇱
Taiwan develops suicide drones akin to Ukraine’s to defend against China – FT
President Lai conveys his hopes for new military graduates – Taipei Times: ‘The military should staunchly defend the nation’s sovereignty, he added.’
Taiwan binnenland en economie
President Lai’s remark on hammering out ‘impurities’ to defend democracy draws opposition criticism – Focus Taiwan
Eric Chu 朱立倫 condemns Lai Ching-te 賴清德’s ‘10 Talks on the Country’ – KMT Department of International Affairs: ‘The “Ching-Te Project,” Chu argued, is fundamentally a political purification engineered to establish a one-party dictatorship under Lai.’
Xinhua Commentary: Taiwan leader’s distorted view of history destined for dustbin – Xinhua 🇨🇳
China and Taiwan clash over history, Beijing says can’t ‘invade’ what is already its territory – Reuters 🇨🇳
Pro-unification party leader sentenced 10 years for national security offences – Focus Taiwan 🇨🇳
KMT accuses DPP legislator Puma Shen 沈伯洋 of being an American spy and war profiteer – New Bloom: ‘Shen has criticized the KMT for taking China’s cues in attacking his father shortly after he was sanctioned by the Chinese government.’
Recall campaign members allegedly received threats – Taipei Times
Taiwanese cabinet asks lawmakers for help to avoid partial government shutdown – Taipei Times