FILE: Brussels, Belgium - March 24, 2023 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. EU buildings, flags

FILE: Brussels, Belgium - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
2. Various of EU flags; Berlaymont building

London, UK - March 11, 2025 (CRI News Radio - No access Chinese mainland)
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Martin Jacques, former senior fellow, Department of Politics and International Studies, Cambridge University (partially overlaid with shots 4-5):
"If you compare the situation now with 20 years ago, then China's trade relationship and more broader relationship with Europe is much bigger, much, much bigger than it was previously. After Trump was elected in 2016, basically Europe was very influenced by the U.S. approach to China. In other words, basically, most of Europe ended up joining in, introducing barriers and restrictions on trade and investment and so on with China. The situation in regard to that, it's not the same as it was during that period and the British government, for example, has said we regard China to be very important for our economic future, we want a positive economic relationship with China, a broader economic relationship, which is our priority."

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FILE: Brussels, Belgium - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
4. EU flags

FILE: Beijing, China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
5. Aerial shot of Tian'anmen Rostrum, Chinese national flag
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++

FILE: London, UK - Aug 5, 2024 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
6. UK national flag flying atop building

FILE: London, UK - July 4-5, 2024 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
7. UK national flag, Palace of Westminster, Elizabeth Tower

London, UK - March 11, 2025 (CRI News Radio - No access Chinese mainland)
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Martin Jacques, former senior fellow, Department of Politics and International Studies, Cambridge University (partially overlaid with shots 9-11/ending with shot 12):
"Now that is a new voice, really, in this sort of European theater, as it were, with regard to China. And I think that will probably become more common, because the EU is waiting for the U.S. to introduce its tariffs against it, so it's feeling now open conflict with the U.S. over the U.S. foreign policy, the future of NATO and so on. So I think that Europe probably would prefer a better relationship with China in this situation. If it can have a more satisfactory and calmer relationship with China, that would be to the good."

++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
FILE: Washington D.C., USA - October 2024 (CCTV Video News Agency - No access Chinese mainland)
9. Various of White House
10. Capitol Hill

FILE: Brussels, Belgium - April 3, 2024 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
11. Various of NATO flag, sculpture
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FILE: Brussels, Belgium - March 8, 2022 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
12. Various of EU flags, Berlaymont building

Maintaining positive economic ties with China could become a bigger priority for Europe as it faces the threat of tariff hikes from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, UK scholar Martin Jacques said on Tuesday.

In an interview with China Radio International (CRI), Jacques, former senior fellow at the Department of Politics and International Studies at Cambridge University, said that the circumstances faced by Europe now are totally different to Trump's previous term, when he also sought to use tariffs on other countries to advance his own agenda.

Since Trump returned to the White House in January, his administration has been pushing its so-called "America First" approach, threatening a new trade war against multiple countries.

In February, Trump announced that his administration would impose a 25-percent tariff on EU products, including automobiles.

In response, the European Commission said that the EU would react "firmly and immediately" against unjustified barriers to free and fair trade.

"If you compare the situation now with 20 years ago, then China's trade relationship and more broader relationship with Europe is much bigger, much, much bigger than it was previously. After Trump was elected in 2016, basically Europe was very influenced by the U.S. approach to China. In other words, basically, most of Europe ended up joining in, introducing barriers and restrictions on trade and investment and so on with China. The situation in regard to that, it's not the same as it was during that period and the British government, for example, has said we regard China to be very important for our economic future, we want a positive economic relationship with China, a broader economic relationship, which is our priority," said Jacques.

As economic uncertainties grow, Jacques believes that Europe's shifting stance on China is becoming more widespread, with some countries in the region seeking deeper engagement with China to counterbalance potential disruptions caused by U.S. trade policies.

"Now that is a new voice, really, in this sort of European theater, as it were, with regard to China. And I think that will probably become more common, because the EU is waiting for the U.S. to introduce its tariffs against it, so it's feeling now open conflict with the U.S. over the U.S. foreign policy, the future of NATO and so on. So I think that Europe probably would prefer a better relationship with China in this situation. If it can have a more satisfactory and calmer relationship with China, that would be to the good," he said.