China's Envoy Urges EU To Resist 'Unwarranted' US Pressure To Curb Trade With Beijing

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st March, 2023) The Chinese ambassador to the European Union, Fu Cong, has called on European countries not to follow Washington's demand for them to limit trade with Beijing.

"We (China) do hope that the European governments and the European politicians can see where their interests lie and then resist the unwarranted pressure from the US," Fu told the Financial Times on Thursday.

According to the diplomat, those countries that will sever business ties with "such a thriving market as big as China" will do so "at their own peril." The US will "stop at nothing" in its efforts to disrupt normal relations between the EU and China, the ambassador said.

Fu noted that the Netherlands "yielded to the pressure of the US" by announcing restrictions on exports to China of its high-end semiconductor-making technology.

According to the diplomat, China in such a situation "cannot just sit there and see its own interests being trampled like this without taking any actions in response."

Washington has ramped up efforts to persuade Europe to toughen its approach to China, as relations between the two economic superpowers have deteriorated over the Taiwan issue and Beijing's support for Moscow amid Russia's military operation in Ukraine. Some European countries, such as Germany, are reportedly reluctant to cut trade ties with China, but in recent weeks, EU officials have signaled that the bloc is ready to impose sanctions if Beijing crosses their red line by supplying arms to Russia.