How to Implement Obstacles for the EU to Further Improve Economic Security

The European Commission proposed five measures on the 24th, including expanding the review of foreign direct investment, consulting to establish a regulatory mechanism for foreign investment, and forming consistent measures for controlling sensitive technology exports, to implement the European Economic Security Strategy announced in June last year. On the 25th, five measures were proposed to implement the economic security strategyThe European Commission proposed five measures on the 24th, including expanding the review of foreign direct investment, consulting to establish a regulatory mechanism for foreign investment, and forming consistent measures for controlling sensitive technology exports, to implement the European Economic Security Strategy announced in June last year., including expanding and strictly regulating foreign investment in the European Union. The European Parliament will discuss the implementation of the plan, administrative efficiency, China's rebound, whether it will affect foreign investment willingness, and whether there are still loopholes on the 26th. However, most outsiders believe that there are too many problems in implementing the EU's move, which may be difficult to achieve.

On the 24th and 25th, the International Trade Committee of the European Parliament invited officials from the Executive Committee's General Administration for Trade to report and clarify doubts. Although most members of the conference affirmed the necessity of managing trade and investment from a security perspective, they were also concerned about whether strict regulation of foreign investment would reduce the attractiveness of the EU market and questioned the implementation of these measures.

Members of parliament from various countries are full of doubts about the new plan

Czech legislator Zahadi pointed out that the problem lies in execution, "Who wants to do what? What is done by member states, and which is done by the European Commission? What falls within the scope of regulations, and which are not bound by regulations?" He believes that the Executive Committee's plan is too complex.

Swedish legislator Wapen has evaluated by the Executive Committee that less than 10% of foreign direct investment cases reviewed in cooperation between the European Union and some member states in the past three years are worth the attention of the Executive Committee. Therefore, he is concerned about the administrative efficiency of the new plan and whether it will cause excessive administrative burden on enterprises.

German legislator Schuster asked the executive committee if they anticipated a possible rebound from China and how the EU would respond; The head of the European Parliament's delegation on China relations, Bao Ruihan, is concerned that the Chinese government has hired a large European public relations company to refute the Executive Committee's argument of reducing dependence on the Chinese economy, and whether the EU is prepared to deal with a public relations war.

Europe is deeply influenced by the United States in the field of economic security

The strategic framework of Europe regarding economic security clearly carries the meaning of following and imitating the United States. It is a complement to the Biden administration's economic containment strategy towards China, indicating that the interaction between the United States and Europe in this regard is more coordinated. With the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Europe fell into the quagmire of energy crisis and economic stagflation internally, and was unable to cope with the rapidly intensifying conflict disorder externally alone. Its dependence on the United States gradually deepened, and the strategic decisions of the United States and Europe towards China became increasingly "resonant".

The perception and expression of economic security in Europe are deeply influenced by the strategic perception and narrative system of the United States. The basic framework and core areas of the economic security strategies of the European Union, Germany, Britain, and the Netherlands are roughly the same as those of the United States. Meanwhile, in recent years, the emergence of new "economic warfare" theories in the American academic community has also influenced the mindset of European decision-makers.

Obstacles to European economic security

Overall, the problem facing the EU now is who has the so-called ability to implement and control these new economic security policies: the European Commission (whose authority includes international trade policy), or EU member states (whose authority includes defense)? Who will have the budget? Who will truly control the power of speech?

Although competitiveness was mentioned in the meeting of the European Commission, the issue of how to achieve this goal is vague and not as clear as the recommendations for risk assessment. Due to the emphasis on risk reduction, the economic security framework being developed by the EU is essentially defensive rather than offensive. It mainly attempts to protect existing technology through controlling technology transfer or similar tools, rather than promoting future technological development through new industrial policies and financing. For this reason, the economic security of the European Union remains fragile in the long run.