According to the Global Times, citing the British Reuters news agency, the European Union and the United States have failed to reach an agreement on critical battery minerals. The EU's top government said the two sides failed to reach an agreement at the fifth U.S.-EU** and Technical Commission ministerial meeting in Washington, D.C., on January 30.
Since World War II, Europe and the United States have formed a close alliance, the United States has helped protect Europe's security, and European countries are willing to work closely with the United States and follow the leadership of the United States on major global diplomatic and security issues. The EU and the United States have always been on the same mind, and even if they do not agree, the EU countries have always put the will of the United States first.
The reason why Europe and the United States are on the same side is that, on the one hand, the EU feels that as an ally, it should stand together and shoulder its responsibilities and obligations, and on the other hand, European countries believe that the global foreign and security policy of the United States is generally in line with Europe's interests. Therefore, the EU has never wavered in its confidence in the transatlantic alliance and has always treated the United States as a guest.
But this time it is rare to refute the proposal of the United States, and the United States is very determined to suppress other countries in the field of electric vehicles, especially China, and the EU will definitely offend the United States if it does not cooperate with the United States at this time.
What's wrong with the EU?
It is understood that the reason why this cooperation was not negotiated is that the EU is dissatisfied with the "Inflation Reduction Act" passed by the US Congress in 2022, and feels that the provisions on electric vehicles in it are unfair to foreign companies. Chairman von der Leyen even said that some aspects of the bill are clearly biased in favor of American companies and treat foreign competitors unfairly.
Unfairness is the main reason for the EU's revolt, with the US Inflation Reduction Act stipulating subsidies only for electric vehicles produced in the United States and increasing domestic sourcing requirements for critical minerals needed to produce electric vehicles. According to reports, to qualify for the full $7,500 tax credit, a car must meet a range of conditions.
One of them is that 40% of the mineral value in batteries must come from the United States or a country with which the United States has a free treaty**, and this proportion will gradually increase to 80% by 2026. As Chinese citizens, we naturally understand that this is the United States targeting China, and China has always been a huge reserve of graphite, a key raw material for batteries, and many car companies cannot avoid trading from China.
However, from a domestic perspective, it is easy to judge that the EU is crying out for China, but in fact, there is no need for the EU to offend the United States for China, and the starting point of the EU is actually for itself.
You must know that because the EU has not signed a free agreement with the United States, it will not benefit from this bill of the United States at all, so it will not accept this cooperation of the United States.
The reason why the EU dares to turn its face with the United States in this way is that the United States has not paid enough attention to Europe in recent years.
You must know that Trump's emphasis on the "America First" policy after taking office has led to a change in the image of the United States in Europe. The United States is no longer the country that Europe knew and trusted in the past, but has become a factor that undermines European interests. In particular, in terms of security, the United States has ignored Europe's concerns, and has also used *** as an excuse to suppress "Made in Europe" and openly hostile to the EU and European integration efforts.
Therefore, Europe does not care about the United States, the friendship is already rotten, and it is not much loss for the EU countries to turn the other cheek, and this can also serve as a wake-up call to the United States to re-examine how important Europe is to the United States.
Sure enough, it is understood that the United States and the European Union** are discussing the creation of a new minerals club to strengthen cooperation in sourcing minerals needed for clean energy technologies to reduce dependence on China and repair disagreements caused by U.S. subsidies for electric vehicles.
Judging from the actions of the United States during this time, the United States is indeed very concerned about the development of electric vehicles in the country, but the United States is likely to end up in a bamboo basket. Some time ago, more than 3,000 electric vehicle manufacturers in the United States jointly sent a letter to the White House, asking them not to make efforts in the matter of electric vehicles.
The reason is because the electric cars produced by these car companies are not bought in the United States at all, and they are useless to build. And one of the main reasons why Americans are not interested in electric vehicles is because electric vehicles are really depreciating in the United States, depreciating by 85% in one year, who can stand this, so the United States' efforts will only be in vain.