By Danial Azhar
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -European Council President Antonio Costa said on Monday that high-level officials from China were scheduled to visit Brussels in the coming weeks to discuss Beijing’s export curbs on rare earths.
China’s expanded controls of rare earth exports have caused a global shortage, prompting an escalation in global trade tensions, particularly with the United States.
Beijing controls more than 90% of the world’s supply of rare earth materials, which are essential for high-tech manufacturing, including electric vehicles, semiconductors and missiles.
“We are very concerned about the trade relationship with China, especially the recent measures that China adopted regarding the export control of critical raw materials,” Costa told selected media in an interview on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur.
“A high-level delegation from China is going to Brussels in the coming weeks and we hope to address these in the proper way.”
Costa said China was also the country best placed to end the war between Ukraine and Russia, adding that Beijing underestimates its leverage over Moscow.
He also said the European Union would look to finalise trade agreements with Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines soon, following his participation at a meeting of leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the Malaysian capital.
The EU would not send observers to war-torn Myanmar for an election, Costa added, as the European bloc does not recognise the authority of the military-led administration in the Southeast Asian country.
(Reporting by Danial Azhar; Editing by David Stanway)
