The European Union (EU) said that China's decision to defer rare earth export controls against the United States for one year also applies to the EU.
Maroš Šefčovič, the EU commissioner for trade and economic security, said on Nov. 1 local time on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that "constructive consultations were held with China's Ministry of Commerce at a senior official level," and stated accordingly.
Šefčovič said, "China confirmed that the deferral of export control measures in October also applies to the EU," and "both sides reaffirmed continued cooperation to improve the implementation of export control policies."
Olof Gill, Spokesperson for the European Commission on trade, also said in a statement, "We welcome China's 12-month deferral of the relevant export controls announced on Oct. 9," adding, "This is an appropriate and responsible measure in the context of ensuring stable global trade flows in a very important sector."
At the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the 30th of last month, China decided to defer by one year export controls on rare earths against the United States. The move follows the United States' one-year deferral of applying restrictions on measures regarding transactions by subsidiaries of foreign corporations deemed a national security threat.
After the U.S.-China talks, the EU asked China to apply the same measure to them. Šefčovič told reporters in Rome the previous day that "we are holding a high-level formal meeting with China regarding export controls," and "we plan to discuss it again with the Chinese counterparts in the very near future."