President Donald Trump called it a “12 out of 10.” Xi Jinping called it “a new start.” Markets exhaled. But in Brussels, the mood was far less euphoric.
While Washington and Beijing reached a fragile truce over tariffs and rare earths, Europe woke up to the same hard truth: it’s still dangerously dependent on China—and wasn’t even in the room when the world’s two biggest powers decided to hit pause on their trade war.
A handshake in Beijing, a headache in Brussels
President Trump and President Xi agreed to a package of short-term measures meant to cool tensions, but for Europe, the relief is anything but straightforward.
Under the agreement, the U.S. will slash tariffs on fentanyl-linked Chinese goods from 20 to 10 percent, while China said it would delay implementing its latest rare earth export controls, part of a broader package negotiated with Washington.
Rare earths, so important to electric vehicles, airplanes, advanced chips, and defense systems, may seem like a technical topic—but make no mistake—they are at the heart of global power. Today, they are on the front line in the U.S.-China strategic rivalry.
China controls over 90% of the world’s processed rare earths. These materials are essential for electric vehicles, renewable energy, and high-tech defense systems. By restricting exports—especially to defense users—Beijing is sending a message: these resources are now a geopolitical weapon.
According to the U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, speaking on Air Force One, China would not impose the proposed new controls but did not address the April measures. Beijing’s official statement also pledged to “study and refine plans,” giving the country room to comply with the U.S. deal while maintaining influence over other markets.
For Europe, the situation is sobering. While the U.S. and China broker a temporary truce, Brussels continues to wrestle with the persistent supply chain squeeze affecting rare earths, critical magnets, and the industries that rely on them. The coming days of EU-China talks will be pivotal in determining whether Europe can secure concessions of its own—or remain on the sidelines as Washington and Beijing recalibrate global trade.
“An amazing meeting,” President Trump told Bloomberg, adding that “a lot of decisions were made.” During the President Trump-Xi meeting, NVIDIA chips emerged as a key point of discussion, highlighting the strategic stakes of advanced AI hardware. President Trump said the two leaders discussed Chinese access to NVIDIA GPUs but emphasized he “wouldn’t budge” on the U.S.’s top-tier Blackwell processors, the most advanced chips in the company’s lineup. This signals a controlled easing: China may gain access to older or mid-tier GPUs, but the U.S. is safeguarding its cutting-edge compute advantage, critical for AI research, military applications, and high-performance data centers.
The move also has implications for Europe, where many AI and tech companies rely on NVIDIA hardware, meaning supply shifts and price fluctuations in the U.S.-China dynamics could ripple across global tech supply chains.
Factories on edge
For Europe’s carmakers, battery producers, and defense suppliers, that silence was deafening. The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has warned that if Chinese exports remain restricted, production lines could grind to a halt within two weeks.
No doubt, this is about more than trade—it is about survival. EU Commissioner Stéphane Séjourné will lead Europe’s response to its vulnerabilities in critical raw materials. Inspired by Japan’s efforts to reduce dependence on China, Séjourné envisions a centralized system for procuring and stockpiling essential materials for European companies. The plan mirrors the EU’s coordinated approach to COVID-19 vaccines but on a far larger, industrial scale, with storage and distribution capabilities tailored to support multiple key sectors across the continent.
At the same time, a Chinese delegation arrived in Brussels—notably without any senior ministers—to continue talks on Nexperia and raw material access. The discussions, which resume Friday, now take place in the long shadow of Trump’s Beijing photo-op. Beijing’s timing seems designed to reassure Washington that it can play a stabilizing role while giving Europe a chance to actively participate in shaping the outcome.
Berlin takes no chances.
Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz convened the newly formed National Security Council to assess contingency plans for the automotive and energy sectors. His government is also advancing cooperative efforts with Washington and Tokyo to shore up supply chains for critical minerals.
At the same time, the European Commission’s competition authority is scrutinizing MMG Limited, a Chinese-backed miner, in its attempt to acquire Anglo American’s Brazilian nickel operations. Brussels views the case as a key indicator of mounting concern over China’s expanding role in Europe’s critical raw materials supply chain.
A global chessboard
The Trump-Xi deal wasn’t the only headline on trade this week. The U.S. also reached an agreement with South Korea, cutting tariffs from 25% to 15% in exchange for $200 billion in investments, plus an additional $150 billion earmarked for American shipbuilding. Seoul will also purchase “vast quantities” of U.S. oil and gas, which Trump hailed as “another win for American energy.” Taken together, these moves signal a fast, transactional approach by Washington, one that prioritizes bilateral gains and leaves traditional allies, including the EU, trying to keep pace rather than shaping the rules themselves.
Europe’s Race for Strategic Autonomy
The EU’s response to the rare‑earth and critical‑materials squeeze remains uneven. The REsourceEU initiative—designed to reduce the bloc’s dependency on external suppliers—still suffers from serious funding and capacity gaps.
Meanwhile, the upcoming launch of the G7 Critical Minerals Production Alliance in Toronto could offer a meaningful counterweight—but only if Europe moves beyond draft policies and puts real money on the table.
Europe’s challenge is about speed and resources. Ideas exist, but ambitions lag behind execution. In the industrial age, nations fought over land. Today, they race for time.
China sprints. Europe hesitates. America recalibrates. Each moves to its own rhythm, and none can easily adopt another’s pace.
The strategic question is synchronization: not to slow the fast or push the cautious, but to align their clocks toward a shared horizon of security, technological leadership, and economic resilience.
For now, the clocks of global power tick out of sync: one racing, one calculating, and one negotiating. The pressing issue is whether humanity can bring them into harmony before the machines we’ve created begin to set the tempo themselves—and dictate who wins the next era.
A reprieve, not a reset
For now, the Trump-Xi truce could give Europe a valuable window to act. A one‑year pause on Chinese licensing has the potential to ease pressure on global supply chains—if Beijing implements it consistently. The European Commission and China are set to continue discussions in Brussels this week under the “Export Control Dialogue,” even without minister-level representation, offering Europe a chance to advance its own interests.
The next 24 hours could be decisive. Friday’s Brussels talks present Europe with an opportunity to secure meaningful, reciprocal concessions before industries face disruptions. At the same time, programs like ReSourceEU and the upcoming G7 Critical Minerals Production Alliance offer Europe a broader toolkit to reduce dependency on external suppliers and build long-term strategic resilience. President Trump may have grabbed the headlines, and President Xi a measure of calm, but Europe now has the chance to turn this breathing space into tangible gains for its industries and strategic autonomy.
Societies tell it differently: some move on a fast clock, driven by urgency and ambition; others run on a slow clock, guided by reflection and caution; and some follow the market clock—a rhythm dictated not by governments, but by competition, profit, and the pulse of innovation.
These temporal rhythms define, in the emerging age of artificial intelligence, the world’s three great players: China’s fast clock, Europe’s measured clock, and America’s market clock. That Europe’s deliberate pace may appear cautious, but together with initiatives such as ReSourceEU, the G7 Critical Minerals Alliance, and strategic AI programs, it can turn patience into precision, and the continent can not only keep pace but also shape the rules of this new era. Together, these rhythms are propelling humanity into a world of staggering innovation, immense opportunity, and mounting geopolitical and technological stakes.
Prof. Dr. Cristina Vanberghen is a globally recognized academic, policy strategist, and senior expert in digital governance, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. Her career spans leadership roles across the European Commission, the European Parliament, and top-tier consulting firms, including Deloitte & Touche and Ernst & Young, providing her with deep expertise in digital transformation, regulatory frameworks, and the public-private interplay in technology.
Bridging diplomacy, academia, and industry, she brings an interdisciplinary perspective, combining scientific rigor with policy relevance and global inclusivity. Her ongoing research includes comparative studies on health-data governance (UK, India, EU) and EU–China digital relations, exemplifying evidence-based, globally oriented scholarship.
Recognized for promoting diverse and underrepresented perspectives, Prof. Vanberghen actively integrates voices from Europe and the Global South, ensuring gender, geographic, and development-level balance in all her initiatives. Her contributions have been acknowledged by the European External Action Service (EEAS), G7/G20 forums, and leading international academic and policy institutions.
Her academic affiliations include Yerevan State University (YSU), where she serves as professor and head of the diplomatic sector, leading the Center for International Relations and teaching pioneering courses on artificial intelligence and diplomacy. She also collaborates with the European University Institute (EUI, Florence) and McGill University on cutting-edge discussions at the intersection of technology, law, and global governance.
