{"id":41985,"date":"2026-01-09T13:54:25","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T12:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/badania.uew.pl\/?p=41985"},"modified":"2026-01-09T14:32:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T13:32:19","slug":"europes-shifting-position-in-chinas-strategic-framework","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/badania.uew.pl\/en\/europes-shifting-position-in-chinas-strategic-framework\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s Shifting Position in China\u2019s Strategic Framework"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A Chinese cargo ship, the threat of an embargo and a European chip producer. \u201cOur relations resemble a plate of spaghetti: we can see both ends of each strand, but not its exact course.\u201d How secure is Europe when ships, raw materials and microchips become tools of geopolitical pressure? Commentary and analysis by Przemys\u0142aw Skulski<\/a>, Associate Professor at WUEB, and other experts can be found at badania.uew.pl – a space for clear, competent voices in an increasingly noisy world. A container vessel leaving Ningbo, an embargo on rare earth metals and a dispute over a European semiconductor plant sound like the plot of a geopolitical thriller. Yet they describe the very real situation the European Union faces today. These intertwined international processes are precisely what Dr hab. Przemys\u0142aw Skulski, Associate Professor at WUEB, an expert in security and international relations, explains.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The story begins on 23 September in the port of Ningbo-Zhoushan, where the Istanbul Bridge sets off with cargo worth around USD 200 million – including photovoltaic cells, batteries and textiles. The ship follows a new northern route across the Arctic Ocean, cutting travel time by half compared with the Suez Canal. For Poland and Central Europe, this opens an opportunity to strengthen Gda\u0144sk\u2019s position in global trade. At the same time, the route depends on Russian icebreakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, China announces an embargo on rare earth metals – the 17 elements essential for producing magnets, electric vehicle engines, processors, smartphones and modern fighter jets. Beijing\u2019s advantage stems not only from its deposits, but from its control over around 60% of global extraction and 90% of refining capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In parallel, tensions escalate around Nexperia – a European company owned by a Chinese investor and a critical supplier for the automotive sector. US sanctions, decisions by Dutch authorities, resistance from Chinese facilities and the suspension of semiconductor wafer shipments threaten to halt production in EU automotive factories, including those linked to Poland\u2019s supply chain, where roughly 400,000 people work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A web of dependencies: Associate Professor Skulski on the vice in which Europe finds itself<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In a short span of time, two \u201cjaws\u201d of China\u2019s geopolitical vice become visible:<\/p>\n\n\n\n