Insights from South China Morning Post, Table.Media and Politico China Watcher
The news
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has spearheaded a tough approach to Beijing, marked by calls to de-risk the Chinese economy, investigations into Chinese imports and new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles due next week can be announced.
But that stance could weaken if far-right and far-left groups make significant gains in the European Parliament elections taking place from June 6 to 9, experts say.
SIGNALS
The far left and far right are friendlier to China
Ursula von der Leyen is expected to retain the presidency, but both far-right and far-left groups are expected to gain seats in parliament, along with power and influence that could change China’s stance on the bloc. Fringe factions have consistently voted against legislation targeting China, the Association for International Affairs in Prague notes, while centrist parties support tougher measures. Some far-left lawmakers have even introduced legislation that reflects the official language of the Chinese government. Beijing has been actively courting these same lawmakers, including by holding in-person meetings, Politico reported.
But the far right’s ties to China are more in the spotlight
Beijing is keeping a close eye on how far-right parties in particular are performing: a strong turnout in the EU, followed by elections in three German states later this year, could “create an impression of political disorder,” wrote a colleague from the German Marshall Fund, that delays any legislation aimed at curbing Chinese ambitions. Last month, the office of Maximilian Krah, a German politician, was searched and his assistant arrested on suspicion of spying for China. (Krah’s AfD party has since been expelled by a far-right coalition of parties in the European Parliament, after Krah said Nazi SS soldiers were “not all criminals.”)
European competitiveness is an election issue
Domestic issues, rather than international tensions, are usually the main concerns of voters in the European Union. But China is especially relevant domestically, as it affects competition and investment, said Amelie Richter, EU-China reporter for Berlin-based news channel Table.Media. Particularly in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, some politicians have claimed that the EU is capitulating to China by phasing out traditional cars in favor of electric vehicles, a market that China, for example, leads.
