Ireland Must Speak Up for China During Its Presidency of the Council of the European Union
Europe Sino Institute research estimates that Ireland accumulated a €54 billion trade surplus in goods and services with China between 2012 and 2024.
As Ireland holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, it has an important opportunity to influence the direction of Europe’s relationship with China.
A central question therefore deserves serious consideration:
Should Dublin use its position to encourage a fairer, more balanced and pragmatic European approach towards China, or align itself with an increasingly confrontational trade policy emerging from Brussels?
For Ireland, this is not simply a question of foreign policy. There are significant economic interests at stake.
Irish dairy exports to China were worth approximately €382 million in 2024, while Irish beef exports remain suspended. The contrast demonstrates how quickly regulatory decisions, trade restrictions and wider geopolitical tensions can affect important sectors of the Irish economy.
Ireland also plays an important role in facilitating billions of euros’ worth of Intel chip exports to the Chinese market, generating significant commercial benefits for one of the world’s largest American technology companies.
Yet an important question is rarely asked: what does Beijing receive in return?
Ireland’s Council presidency provides Dublin with an opportunity to ensure that China’s position is properly represented in European discussions surrounding trade, investment, industrial policy and economic security.
Ireland has traditionally benefited from openness, international trade and constructive economic relationships. It should therefore consider whether escalating protectionism against China ultimately serves either Irish or wider European interests.
Can Ireland become a bridge between China and Europe, encouraging dialogue and cooperation, or will its national economic interests increasingly come into conflict with the EU’s evolving China policy?
Looking Beyond the “China Shock 2.0” Narrative
Much of the current European debate is centred on what has been described as “China Shock 2.0” — concerns that European markets are being overwhelmed by subsidised Chinese electric vehicles, solar panels, batteries, steel, chemicals and other manufactured products.
But concentrating almost exclusively on this narrative risks presenting only one side of a much more complex economic relationship.
Ireland itself recorded a cumulative €54 billion trade surplus in goods and services with China between 2012 and 2024, according to Eurostat and Europe Sino Institute research.
At the European level, the picture is similarly more nuanced than the frequently cited headline figures on the EU’s goods deficit suggest. The EU accumulated a services trade surplus with China of nearly €200 billion over the same period.
The composition of European imports from China also matters. Approximately 38% of euro-area goods imports from China are intermediate products. These are inputs used by European companies to manufacture other products. Access to affordable and increasingly sophisticated Chinese components can reduce production costs, support European manufacturing, sustain employment and exports, and improve the competitiveness of European businesses.
China is also helping to reduce the cost of Europe’s green transition. In 2024, approximately 98% of extra-EU solar-panel imports came from China, providing European households, companies and energy projects with access to competitively priced renewable-energy technology.
Investment is another part of the relationship that receives considerably less attention. Chinese foreign direct investment flows into the EU increased from €5.2 billion in 2023 to €9.4 billion in 2024. Such investment can support employment, local supply chains, tax revenues, skills development and technology transfer within European economies.
These realities do not mean that legitimate disagreements between China and the European Union should be ignored. They do, however, demonstrate why the relationship should not be reduced to a simplistic narrative in which trade with China is portrayed principally as a threat.
Ireland Has an Opportunity to Lead
Ireland has benefited substantially from its economic relationship with China. That gives Dublin both an interest and a responsibility to encourage a European policy based on evidence, proportionality and constructive engagement.
During its Council presidency, Ireland should be willing to question protectionist measures where they are not justified, encourage continued dialogue with Beijing and support policies that recognise the enormous benefits flowing in both directions from China-EU economic relations.
Europe does not need to choose between defending legitimate economic interests and maintaining a productive relationship with China. Both objectives can be pursued through dialogue, negotiation and carefully balanced policy.
Ireland is particularly well positioned to make that case.
Rather than contributing to a cycle of economic confrontation, Dublin should use the presidency to help build a relationship in which disagreements can be addressed without losing sight of the substantial trade, investment, technological, educational and cultural ties connecting Europe and China.
The Europe Sino Institute’s mission is to strengthen mutual understanding and promote trade, investment, educational and cultural relationships that benefit both Europe and China.
We believe China is too often subjected to one-sided reporting, protectionist trade measures and politically driven accusations that fail to reflect the full complexity of its relationship with Europe.
We will continue to challenge such narratives with evidence and advocate for constructive engagement, greater understanding and a more balanced European approach towards China.
