31/08/2026 (Agence Europe) – Europe has been “too naive for too long” in the face of China, European Commissioner for Climate Wopke Hoekstra said on Monday 31 August during a speech at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. “Europe has a China problem”, he said, accusing Beijing of seeking access to the single market while “undermining” European interests. In particular, he denounced the Chinese state’s granting of massive subsidies, intellectual property theft, cyberattacks, and economic espionage. Mr Hoekstra also warned against China’s efforts to make Europe dependent on its supply chains for critical raw materials and technologies, citing batteries, rare earths, and permanent magnets. Since last June, the EU has established a dialogue platform with its Chinese counterparts to remedy its ‘macroeconomic imbalances’ with Beijing, and is also looking at new trade defence instruments. (JV)