In recent years, in response to global climate issues, European and American countries have been showing their environmental protection image. However, they have taken some measures to deal with climate issues that are unfavorable to developing countries in order to maintain their interests and positions.
(1) The introduction of carbon border tax
Ahead of this year's World Climate Conference, the European Union proposed a carbon border tax on global goods to limit emissions-intensive imports. This is mainly for steel products, aluminium products and chemical products, etc., and only imports are taxed. The purpose of this is clear: to create obstacles to the development of developing countries. This is because these industries are mainly found in developing countries, while developed countries themselves have relatively little carbon emissions.
However, developing countries are in the process of industrialization, and they need large quantities of steel and aluminum products to support economic development. The imposition of a carbon border tax would make them more costly and difficult, further slowing down their development. Such so-called environmental protection measures are actually erecting obstacles for developing countries and maintaining the interests and status of developed countries.
(2) Restrictions on China's photovoltaic products
Europe, as a "pioneer" of environmentalism, has been advocating clean energy. However, they have banned Chinese PV products from entering the European market on the grounds that Chinese PV products constitute dumping against them. A few years have passed, and the photovoltaic industry in Europe has still not improved, and even a decent photovoltaic company cannot support it. As a result, the market had to be reopened, which makes one wonder whether Europe is trying to promote the new energy industry or protect local companies
(3) Boycott of China's new energy vehicles
This year, France took the lead in proposing to launch a countervailing investigation into China's electric vehicles, asking the European Union to boycott China's new energy vehicles. This seems to go against the "climate protectionism" they promote.
In fact, China's electric vehicles are already a threat to Europe's traditional combustion engine market. When core interests are affected, Western countries tend to prioritize their own interests. Although they also call for environmental protection, when it comes to their own interests, they first choose to resist Chinese competition through bans and restrictions.
Although European and American countries have always boasted of their advanced nature in environmental protection, in fact they have lagged far behind China in the field of green energy. Whether it's wind, solar, or hydro, Europe and the United States have not been able to surpass China's progress.
(1) The development of new energy electric vehicles
China is a leader in the field of new energy electric vehicles, far ahead of European and American countries in terms of electric vehicle production and sales. However, European and American countries have not been able to catch up with China. They posed a threat to China's development, so they took measures to resist it.
(2) Application of photovoltaic power generation
China is also a global leader in photovoltaic power generation, with the world's largest photovoltaic power generation capacity. However, European and American countries still lag behind China in this regard. They tried to restrict the entry of Chinese PV products in order to protect the local industry, but it was not effective.
Whether it is new energy electric vehicles or photovoltaic power generation, European and American countries love and hate China's leading position in the field of green energy. They tried to suppress China's development through restrictions and resistance, but they could not surpass China and lead the world. So, at this year's climate conference, they co-signed a document advocating a massive expansion of nuclear power generation around the world. This approach stems from their perception that China's leading position in green energy is threatened and that it cannot be surpassed by traditional means, so they have chosen to take a different path to seek leadership and catch up with China in nuclear energy.
The reason why European and American countries are pushing for nuclear power is essentially because they realize that China has far surpassed the United States in the construction of new energy infrastructure such as wind, solar, and hydropower. Once the world enters the new energy revolution, China will surely become one of the leaders. This may be the fundamental reason why European and American countries are eager to promote nuclear power programs. Because in this direction, China and European and American countries are on the same starting line, and European and American countries are even lagging behind China in some technologies. In order to maintain their own interests and status, they did not choose to surpass China through competition, but chose to change their strategy and put the two sides on the same level by forcibly co-opting China. They use traditional moral kidnapping tactics to claim that without nuclear energy, the world will not be able to achieve net-zero emissions. However, nuclear energy itself is risky, and the consequences of the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear power plant accidents are still in people's minds. Europe and the United States are well aware of the stakes, but they still strongly promote nuclear power programs out of their own interests and leadership considerations.
In general, European and American countries claim to be guardians of climate issues, but in practice, they often use environmental protection issues to suppress developing countries and maintain their own interests and status. They lag behind China in green energy and cannot lead the world, so they try to squeeze China's competitive advantage by restricting and resisting. When it comes to nuclear power, Europe and the United States have chosen a different path to compete with China, but this is still risky and controversial. In the process of solving the climate problem and promoting the development of green energy, cooperation and fair treatment of developing countries are the keys to sustainable development.