Of course it works like that, the last one they had up there said "united for our future" and look how united the EU has been!

The rupture: how Europe fell out of love with America Many believed the transatlantic alliance could weather another term of Trump, but a year and a half on those hopes have largely faded.

The rupture: how Europe fell out of love with America

A long read from me from our weekend paper

Absolutely, the right side just hasn't been at the races for months.

Couldn't understand taking Eze off, would have moved him central.

The rupture: how Europe fell out of love with America Many believed the transatlantic alliance could weather another term of Trump, but a year and a half on those hopes have largely faded.

The rupture: how Europe fell out of love with America

A long read from me from our weekend paper

The rupture: how Europe fell out of love with America Many believed the transatlantic alliance could weather another term of Trump, but a year and a half on those hopes have largely faded.

“One can envision a post-Trump world where tensions between the US & EU are dialed down. But we won’t return to anything resembling the transatlantic relationship of past decades. The damage that has been done in a single year has been enormous" @fbermingham.bsky.social

www.scmp.com/news/china/d...

Obviously different marketing strategies for different regions. But Hu is a very divisive character. It'd be like Volvo using Sean Hannity in the US

Striking contrast between how Geely-owned Volvo presents itself globally as a Scandinavian, apolitical brand and its use of Hu Xijin in China.

The ultimate wolf warrior - what's the message there?

They need gas too, I thought

EU members with no representation per the guestlist:

Austria
Hungary
Ireland
Luxembourg

So China is represented at ministerial level by teleconference at Macron's Hormuz summit - as with Japan and a fair few Gulf and SE Asian states.

Kallas was on the call but she must have been added so late, her name isn't on the list. VDL was there

The UN, the WTO, WHO...

It only took 51 minutes or so of Macron's big non-belligerents summit for Iran to reopen the Strait.

Who says Europe has no leverage? 😏

ACEA has 17 members, mostly from Europe, but also some from outside the region such as Ford and Japan’s Honda

There's a long history of such things - Huawei and others have been in groups like Solar Power Europe & DigitalEurope. Critics say it stifles criticism of Chinese policy

BYD Pushes to Become First Chinese Member of Europe’s Car Lobby BYD Co. is in talks to join Europe’s car lobby group, a move that would give the Chinese automaker a voice in the region where it faces tariffs on its electric-vehicle imports.

This could be big: BYD is in talks to join Europe’s car lobby group

It would be ACEA's first Chinese member. ACEA lobbies the EU on behalf of the European car industry - so it would give China's biggest carmaker more influence over EU policy.

A HUGE, narrative-breaking moment for the UK car market

New EVs are now cheaper than petrol cars on average, says Autotrader

Last yr CCC said price parity was due by 2028 – and it's already here

And EVs are already MUCH cheaper to run than petrol

Concerns Mandelson failed M16 vetting for US ambassador – but was appointed anyway The prime minister is facing serious questions after claims he ignored warnings from the security services to appoint Peter Mandelson as US ambassador

What a wrinkle in the Mandelson saga - he apparently didn't fail vetting because of Epstein, but his links to China...

"Sources have told The Independent that MI6 failed to clear the Labour peer largely because of concerns over his business links to China."

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

Stellantis Eyes Dongfeng Carmaking Deal in Europe, China Stellantis NV is discussing reviving a partnership with Dongfeng Motor Corp. that would involve joint car production in Europe and China, according to people familiar with the matter.

"Dongfeng may in turn make cars from selected Stellantis brands in China, some of the people said.

Reps for the SOE visited sites in Germany and Italy recently. The deliberations include Dongfeng possibly acquiring or investing in one or more European plants"

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Meanwhile: Stellantis is discussing reviving a partnership with Dongfeng Motor Corp. that would involve joint car production in Europe and China, according to people familiar with the matter.

The companies are in talks about giving Dongfeng access to underused Stellantis factories in Europe

BYD-vicepresident: ‘Europese autobouwers verliezen de race door te investeren in verbrandingsmotoren’ BYD-vicepresident Stella Li snapt helemaal niks van Europese autobedrijven die opnieuw in de ontwikkeling van verbrandingsmotoren investeren. China’s grootste autobouwer komt juist met een supersnella...

BYD's Stella Li "can't understand European car companies investing in the development of ICE again"

I'm sure she's fine with it though!

fd.nl/bedrijfsleve...

Germany insisted on delaying phase out of combustion engine. Iran war caused energy shock, et voilà:

BYD was one of the fastest-growing brands in Germany in Q1, with a 135% rise in purchase queries for the Chinese EV heavyweight during that period.

www.reuters.com/busi...

China Lobbies Spain to Sink EU Plans to Boost Its Companies The Chinese government is pressuring Spain to help thwart European Union proposals aimed at making the bloc’s companies more competitive, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Link to BBG report:

Bloomberg on this: "Beijing is pressuring Spain to help thwart EU proposals aimed at making the bloc’s companies more competitive"

"Chinese officials complained that Europe was becoming too protectionist... Officials warned EU policies would harm trade and political ties"

Exclusive | EU to cut funding for Chinese inverters amid change of tack towards Beijing Without fanfare, Brussels will stop funding for projects that use the Chinese-made devices as part of a ‘do more, say less’ strategy.

Story here:

"Beijing would retaliate fiercely and Europe would end up being hurt more than China, Wang was reported to have said"

Seems an extension of the trend of Beijing pushing EU members to water down Brussels' laws. As I reported this week:

Wang Yi told Kallas this month "EU members told Beijing they don't like what's being cooked up in Brussels and that they wished to do more business with China"

Reminder that China's trade surplus with Italy surged almost 40% in the first quarter of 2026 - this after going up 62% over the full year 2025 (so Q1 reading is coming off a very high base) (2025 data in the pic)

MOFCOM readout of the "China-Italy Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation"

"Italy is an important member state of the EU, and it is hoped that Italy will play a constructive role in promoting the healthy and stable development of China-EU economic and trade relations."

And Italian MFA quite pointed on meeting Wang Yi:

"Following Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov's visit to China, Tajani will emphasize the decisive role China can play in raising awareness of Moscow and promoting credible negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine."

Italian MFA on meeting Wang Wentao

"Discussions also cover how to stimulate new qualified Chinese investments in Italy, Chinese export controls on rare earths and critical minerals, and how to improve access to the Chinese market for Italian companies"

www.esteri.it/it/sal...

Quotes Tajani: "Italy attaches great importance to its relations with China, firmly adheres to the one-China policy, and is willing to work with China to strengthen exchanges and dialogue, expand mutually beneficial cooperation"

Note: policy not principle, as they quoted Sanchez

Italy's deputy PM and foreign minister Tajani the latest senior European in Beijing. He met Wang Yi today and Commerce chief Wang Wentao yesterday

Chinese MFA: "China and Italy are ancient civilizations that cherish peace and are important forces in upholding multilateralism."