“I was informed that it [took] more than six rounds of talks between the U.S. and the China to prepare the summits which took place between President Trump and President Xi,” he told reporters at a press conference following an OECD ministerial meeting in the French capital.
“I think that we have to get to the same level of intensity of the negotiations.”
The EU’s goods trade deficit with China widened to €360 billion last year from €312 billion in 2024. It expanded even more sharply in the first quarter of 2026, trade figures show.
EU leaders plan to discuss how to tackle China’s industrial overcapacity and subsidized exports during a June 18-19 European Council meeting; EU commissioners previously discussed how to tackle Beijing’s aggressive trade policy at an end-of-May summit. The topic will also be on the agenda of a meeting of G7 leaders France will chair in its Évian-les-Bains region on June 15-17.
While several EU countries, led by France, are calling for tougher measures such as further trade probes and new trade defense instruments, a free-trade coalition led by Germany has long urged caution.
Last weekend, after the Commission meeting, Beijing was quick to threaten retaliation against any new measures targeting China.