EU's proposed trade measures against China lacks sound basis: former Italian official

A former Italian economic official on Thursday pushed back against the European Union's proposed trade measures targeting China, arguing that the bloc's "301" trade tool rests on shaky ground, and that the EU's structure makes it nearly impossible to craft policies that satisfy all member states.

Michele Geraci, former Undersecretary of State at Italy's Ministry of Economic Development, made the statement in an interview in Shanghai following a reported tool being pushed by some European Union (EU) member states.

According to the reports, some EU member states are preparing a joint document calling on the European Commission -- the executive arm of the EU -- to accelerate the development of a so-called European "301" tool and take tougher measures against China, including proposed imposition of a 40 percent supply cap on crucial products from China.

"I want to give the audience a very simple example. This 40 percent rule of supply is really based on nothing. I buy coffee only from Starbucks. So Starbucks represent 100 percent of my supply of coffee. Do I go to Starbucks and say, 'Oh now you need to buy some of my research analysis to rebalance the trade?' No. I'm a willing buyer. I can switch to another supplier," said Geraci, whose country is one of the 27 EU member states.

"But before doing that, I can even try to make coffee by myself at home, and this is what the European Union should do. Instead of focusing on raising voices, they should try to develop domestic champions. But the structure of the 27 [EU member] countries with not common fiscal [systems], with no common financial systems and redistribution of taxes makes it pretty much impossible," he said.

Building on that point, Geraci said the bloc's internal divisions extend beyond economics, describing the EU as structurally unable to serve all its members equally.

"So this is what I mean when I say it's a structurally dysfunctional organization because it has the power to negotiate trade on behalf of the 27 members, it cannot make all 27 members happy. It can make a couple of them happy and the other 25 unhappy. And this creates unbalances within the industrial structure of the European Union itself," he added.

EU's proposed trade measures against China lacks sound basis: former Italian official

Israel marked the somber third anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that triggered the current round of conflict in Gaza, with national memorial events laying bare deep societal rifts across the country.

The divisions were evident in the anniversary commemorations, as many families of hostages and their supporters chose to skip government-organized ceremonies, arguing that the war had been prolonged for political gains.

"My family who lives in Israel would never go near a government ceremony, which is sad that even in grief we are so divided; the country is still so divided," said Julia, a Canadian visitor to Israel.

As government ministers took the stage in Jerusalem, the families chose to be elsewhere, including at "The Space Left Behind," an exhibition at the Peres Center in Tel Aviv showcasing personal belongings of those killed in the Oct. 7 attack and the war that followed.

"We are giving as much as we can to the families. I feel like the politics is coming between [us and] that exhibition, just because this is all for life," said Emek Keidar Juma'a, curator of "The Space Left Behind" exhibition.

"I have the feeling that I had when I went to Hostages Square. The support of the people in Israel, it's so exciting, and also here. And I see that people are reading and seeing Tal's item, and it's very exciting because they don't have to come. They choose to come in support," said Ela Haimi, a Gaza border resident, who lost her husband Tal in the October 7 attack.

The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed about 1,200 people and triggered a massive Israeli military campaign across Gaza that has killed, according to Gaza-based health authorities, more than 74,200 people. It subsequently expanded into fighting across the region.

Israel marks third anniversary of Oct. 7 attack amid deep societal divisions