In mid-may 2026, beijing's bellows announcedCentral-american relationsTo enter a new phase of “constructive strategic stability”。
Brussels, on the other side of the ocean, is caught in an unprecedented sense of panic and frustration。
Over thereEuropeAs the most reliable ally on the other side of the atlantic, the united states has been at the same pace in terms of trade, geography and even industrial policy to preserve the transatlantic alliance。
When trump and china sat down and held in-depth consultations on global economic trade rules and regional hotspots, europe found, sadly, not only that it had not been able to sit at the negotiating table, but even that it had not been granted the status of a “watcher.”。
This huge gap in identity has been described by the french media as “the most humiliating moment in european diplomatic history”。
Europe is on the side
This sense of “abandonment” in europe is rooted in a serious lag in its judgement of the international situation and a misposition。
In the logic of trump, the establishment of a “column” between the two great powers of china and the united states means that the parties have reached a strategic consensus to “no table”。
The “g2” pattern in china and the united states has developed on a factual level。
For trump, as long as the rhythm of the game with china is contained and the bottom line in the economy and trade is secured, the rest of the so-called “allies” are in fact the leverage in his hands。
Europe’s sense of humiliation stems mainly from the total collapse of three dimensions。
The first is a shift in strategic focus。
Europe had hoped to play a key role between china and the united states。
But when the two super-powers face to face with global rules, europe’s views have not been taken into account, even in the strategic considerations of the united states。
The second is a complete departure of interests。
None of the problems of ukraine, the situation in the middle east and the security of the strait of hormuz, which are at the table for negotiations between the united states and china, are european stakes。
But the united states, in its negotiations, has been unreservedly guided by “maximum american interest” and has completely ignored european concerns。
Finally, the total loss of identity。
The transatlantic front, once considered “indestructible”, is now fragile in the face of real global power distribution。
Europe has become a “visitor”, and indeed a necessary price for its “hotbed politics” over the past decades。
Europe has long enjoyed military security assurances from the united states, cheap energy support from russia and a steady supply of goods from china。
This time of life, in the warm bed of “multiple concessions”, has gradually deprived europe of its ability to think and play independently。
When the great powers return to politics, when protectionism becomes the norm, and europe’s loosely integrated conglomerate, in the absence of a unified decision-making efficiency and a core sovereign entity, naturally appears to be shaky in the face of such an efficient will power as china and russia。
A political coalition that cannot fully unify its internal sovereignty and that wants to have a voice in global rule-making is tantamount to a dream。
It's a mess
After being ignored by the united states, europe not only failed to learn to reflect, but instead turned its head into china in order to save face。
Attempts to prove their existence through tough trade defence measures。
However, the european union’s recent intensive cross-border investigations against chinese enterprises, as well as the use of foreign subsidy regulations to exert maximum pressure, have not only failed to bring europe back to the center of the stage of the great powers, but have instead become more internalized and isolated。
The eu's “hard-mouthed” counterbalance has exposed its deep strategic confusion。
The president of the european commission, von delean, tried to protect the weak industry in europe through various trade barriers as some kind of negotiating capital, trying to attract china's attention and return to the negotiating table。
But that logic is absurd。
As the core of european industry, germany's economic lifeline is tied to the depth of the chinese market。
Not only have the public, siemens and basffs not withdrawn, but they are increasingly investing in china。
The open rift between german law and china’s trade policy is proof of the fact that there is no unity of will within the eu to “unanimate” china。
This contradiction is graphically referred to by european communities as the “fondrain dilemma”。
She bets that “the united states is europe’s eternal anchor”, as a result of which the eu’s automobiles and strategic goods are under even greater tariff pressure than the united kingdom, under the trade tariff pole of trump。
When she was busy signing a list of restrictions on chinese industry, china had already built a more diversified and resilient trade network through the rcep (regional comprehensive economic partnership agreement) and the “one-way path.”。
China's overall regulation of the european union's rare-earth industrial chain is more directly linked to the death of european industrial transformation。
When european automobiles, ai chips and data centres are stuck in “crisis mode” because of raw materials, the eu is surprised that its well-designed barriers to trade are ultimately at the root of european economic growth。
Europe's predicament is that it cannot escape its political dependence on the united states and cannot afford the tragic cost of losing its chinese market。
It is like a man who is lost at a crossroads, trying to prove his independence by waving sticks to both sides of the united states and central america, resulting in the accelerated fragmentation of his own industrial chain。
For europe, the key to getting out of this “dignity” of diplomacy and economy is not to emulate america’s “long arm jurisdiction” or to demonstrate so-called courage by sanctioning china。
Rather, it depends on its courage to break down the tumultuous internal political divides and return to the path of pragmatism。
The age of games of great powers, cruel and true。
Europe’s marginalization will be irreversible if it continues to live in the old “dreams” of the past, and in the illusion that the three countries of central america and russia would yield their benefits。
Europe's future lies not in being the so-called “third pole”, but in its ability to deny its weight as a regional entity。
Instead of being the victim of the game of great powers, we choose an autonomous path that belongs to europe itself and is deeply integrated into global markets。
