The EU wants to put Chinese companies on the sanctions list – the response will follow promptly

So far, the EU has avoided directly attacking China in the aftermath of Russia’s war against Ukraine. But now this attitude seems to be changing: in the eleventh package of sanctions, the European Commission proposes to put seven Chinese companies on the sanctions list. The accusation: the Chinese electronics companies allegedly supply microchips to Russia, which the country would then use in its missiles.

This is reported by the British newspaper Financial Times on Sunday. Sanctioned companies include two companies in mainland China and five in Hong Kong SAR. This would put the EU on an equal footing with the US, which has had some companies on its sanctions list for some time.

Beijing warns and threatens to take “decisive measures” in response

The foreign ministry in Beijing promptly responded to the press announcement. “That is very dangerous. We call on the EU not to go down this wrong path,” said a spokesperson. China will take “decisive measures” to defend its interests. Nevertheless, it was announced on Monday that German Finance Minister Christian Lindner, was not invited to visit China at short notice.

A spokesman for the EU Commission did not want to comment on the contents of the sanctions package on Monday, but only confirmed that enforcement of the already decided sanctions is a priority.

Unlike the US, the EU does not recognize extraterritoriality of its sanctions in a narrower sense. This means that the punitive measures against Russia only apply on their own territory. However, with the new package, Brussels is ready to improve the enforcement and efficiency of its sanctions worldwide.

This means, among other things, that EU exports to third countries can be restricted if it appears that they can be forwarded to Russia unimpeded from there. The focus is mainly on neighboring countries such as Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia. For example, German exports to these countries have doubled since the outbreak of the war. At the beginning of this year, the EU appointed a special representative to investigate these movements. If the political dialogue with Russia’s neighbors does not bear fruit, the EU must limit its exports to these countries as a last resort.

The Bundesrat would also come under pressure

At least that’s the plan. It remains to be seen whether the package of sanctions will be unanimously accepted by the 27 EU countries. The previous ten packages also took longer and longer for governments to agree on a position.

The idea of ​​attacking third countries is controversial and potentially explosive. Such measures could scare off potential partners and drive them into Russia’s arms, some EU members fear, especially with regard to neighboring countries. Directly coming to terms with China also carries major economic risks for Europe. The dependence on the 1.4 billion Reich is significant, especially in the case of Germany as an economic engine.

Direct sanctions against China would also put pressure on the Swiss Federal Council to act, which has more or less adopted all previous EU sanctions in full. If he did that again, Switzerland would also have to put the seven Chinese companies on the sanctions list. It is clear that this would not go down well in Beijing.

As long ago as last November, the Chinese ambassador in Bern warned Switzerland against adopting thematic EU sanctions against China for human rights violations in the Uyghur province of Xinjiang. Should Switzerland decide to take this step, “relations would suffer,” Ambassador Wang Shihting said in an interview with the “NZZ am Sonntag”. (aargauerzeitung.ch)