- 2 months ago
EU climate chief warns China dependence will make EU’s green transition more costly
Hoekstra warns China dependence will make the EU’s green transition more costly, saying there is “no alternative” to levelling the playing field.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/08/31/eu-climate-chief-warns-china-dependence-will-make-eus-green-transition-more-costly
Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages
Hoekstra warns China dependence will make the EU’s green transition more costly, saying there is “no alternative” to levelling the playing field.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/08/31/eu-climate-chief-warns-china-dependence-will-make-eus-green-transition-more-costly
Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Commissioner, thank you very much for joining us on Euronews.
00:03This has been a difficult summer.
00:05We've seen very terrible wildfires in France and Spain in particular.
00:09Excess death, some suggest, upwards of 30,000 people in Europe
00:13and more severe and intense heat waves.
00:16What assessment do you make?
00:18First of all, Maria, thank you very much for having me.
00:21And on this summer, we often talk in hyperbole,
00:25but the word dramatic, I think, truly fits here.
00:28It was a dramatic summer for hundreds of thousands,
00:33probably millions of Europeans.
00:35And how do we prepare better? That is a question.
00:38It seemed to me this summer, compared to last year,
00:40the European Union was better prepared, it was more active, it was faster.
00:43But at the same time, the damage, when you look at financial damage,
00:47economic impact, and again, just the size of natural habitat destroyed,
00:50it was not fundamentally better.
00:52No, indeed. And unfortunately, that is something that will stay with us.
00:57We lost the territory of roughly twice the size of Luxembourg.
01:02The damage in terms of euros is, some say, in the 50, 60, 70 billion,
01:08some say the numbers are...
01:08Do you have a final number yet?
01:10We don't have a final number, but some people are saying it is even higher,
01:13and the most horrible thing is, of course, people are dying.
01:16So, indeed, it is true that we significantly stepped up the men and women
01:22in our firefighting brigades.
01:24So, many more coming to the rescue, also from other geographies.
01:28Many more planes, many more helicopters.
01:31I think we tripled that roughly in the last couple of years.
01:34But that simply is not enough.
01:37We will need to do more in the domain of resilience, adaptation,
01:41and simply fighting the crisis once it hits.
01:44And on the planes in particular, there was criticism of some specific type models
01:48for the helicopters to combat the fires they were made in jurisdictions
01:52outside of the European Union.
01:54In terms of being prepared as Europeans, what are you thinking?
01:58What is the shock plan so this doesn't happen again?
02:01Is there a number that you believe we need to invest this much,
02:04this is what we need in our fleet, and this is a distribution by country?
02:08Because I'm supposed, I imagine, you don't prepare for this in spring next year.
02:12It's going to start now.
02:13And I wish it was as simple as just fitting it all in one number
02:16or one euro number.
02:19The reality is that we need to become much more granular
02:22and do a couple of things at the same time.
02:24That means we need to have the same assessment
02:27of the type of impact we're going to see for the whole union.
02:31We need to be crystal clear about who is responsible for what.
02:35What is for the local governments?
02:36What is for the regional governments?
02:37What is for national governments?
02:39What is for Europe?
02:40We will need to be way more fundamental in what we call,
02:43it's a bit technical, but mainstreaming the type of stuff we build.
02:47Think about a bridge that is damaged.
02:50You do need to make sure that when you build that back,
02:53it is done in a way that survives the next flood or the next disaster.
02:58And finally, and that is a difficult reality,
03:02this will cost us.
03:03So we will need to make more investments
03:06in keeping our people safe from these type of disasters.
03:10And that means how much?
03:12Because what I hear is European countries want,
03:15certainly a big group of them led by Germany,
03:18they say they want to pay less into this budget.
03:20Where are these resources going to come from?
03:22Because I don't hear a discussion about more money,
03:24I hear a discussion about less money.
03:26Yeah, and that conversation I fully understand.
03:30Because in general, when you spend taxpayers' money
03:33that people have earned by hard work,
03:35I think it makes sense to be very vigilant
03:38that you spend it in the right way.
03:41At the same time, when you zoom out,
03:43and I'm not going into a discussion about
03:45whether it should be the regional government's budget
03:47or the national government's budget
03:49or what Europe needs to pay,
03:51we will need to make more upfront investments
03:55in fighting potential fires,
03:57in building dikes,
03:59in all sorts of things we need to do
04:01to make sure we are safe.
04:03And all evidence shows
04:05that making the upfront investments is way cheaper
04:08than just being hit by fire,
04:11being hit by floods,
04:13and then paying for the damage.
04:15That's just way more costly.
04:16In the world of construction,
04:18I'm not a builder,
04:18but usually in the world of construction,
04:20when you say we need to build,
04:21you've already made up a budget for it
04:23and the things you need.
04:24What number do you have in your head?
04:28Is it billions by EU funding
04:31and the national capitals?
04:33What is the amount of financial resources
04:36that you've already budgeted in your head
04:37for all of this?
04:38Look, I don't have a specific number,
04:41and most of this will be by definition
04:44for national budgets, right?
04:45Because this is most first and foremost
04:47a national endeavor,
04:49and the vast amount of money
04:51is with our member states
04:52and not with the union's budget.
04:56And the harsh reality will be
04:58for all of our governments,
05:00and by the way, also for the union,
05:01that this will cost more money.
05:03And then you have two choices.
05:04You can either pay once the damage is done,
05:07that is more costly,
05:09or you can make more upfront investments.
05:11And that is the road I would say
05:13we should take much more fundamentally.
05:16It's a tight fiscal situation,
05:17of course, in Europe,
05:18but you make it clear you want to do it now
05:20and not wait for the damage
05:21and then have to rebuild.
05:23When it comes to the politics,
05:24at the height of the fires,
05:26in Spain in particular,
05:26I spoke to her colleague Teresa Rivera.
05:29She, of course,
05:29is a competition commissioner.
05:31She told me that
05:32this was a real wake-up call,
05:33and she also said that she regretted
05:35that over the past two years
05:37it's been allowed,
05:38or perhaps permitted to some extent,
05:41in public discourse
05:42to question climate action,
05:44to not take it seriously.
05:45And this was like a drunk
05:47telling another drunk
05:48it's okay to drink and drive.
05:49It is so stupid.
05:50It is so dumb.
05:51That was her quote.
05:53Do you hear her frustration?
05:54Do you share her frustration?
05:56Has there been a sort of
05:57we take a back seat
05:57and allow for this discourse
05:59to thrive in public?
06:00Climate change is not real.
06:01Well, for me,
06:02this has been one of the key paradoxes
06:06of the whole debate on the climate, right?
06:08Sometimes you have the same people
06:10who are saying we need to do more
06:12in terms of adaptation and resilience
06:15and fighting these fires
06:16and making sure people are safe,
06:19and I'm fully with them.
06:21And then at the same time,
06:23they are questioning
06:24whether we need to continue
06:26with renewables,
06:27whether we need to make sure
06:29that we clean our energy system
06:32and our industry,
06:34and whether it is actually justifiable
06:36that we spend money abroad
06:37to make sure that, you know,
06:39CO2 goes down globally.
06:42And of course, you know,
06:43you need both.
06:44We will need more
06:46in the domain of adaptation,
06:47resilience,
06:48keep people safe,
06:49simply because the problem
06:50has become so large.
06:51But in the end,
06:53there is no alternative
06:55for radical mitigation of emissions.
06:58And where do you put the needle
07:00in that balance?
07:01Because ultimately,
07:02you will be the face of it.
07:04What I understand
07:05when I hear her words
07:06is that she's saying
07:07we should be more out and about
07:08openly, publicly,
07:09defending this climate agenda.
07:11Is that how you feel?
07:13Absolutely.
07:14And that is exactly
07:14what this commission
07:15and what I personally
07:17have been doing
07:18for, you know,
07:19the whole term
07:20and also in the previous term.
07:22Sometimes, indeed,
07:23against the odds.
07:24But if you look at the policies
07:25the commission
07:26have come up with,
07:28think about
07:28our truly ambitious goal
07:30for 2040,
07:3190%.
07:32If you think about our ETS,
07:34if you think about
07:35what we're now...
07:36Yet at the same time,
07:37the criticism is that
07:38the debate in Europe
07:38for the past two years
07:39has been about
07:41making those targets softer.
07:43And not by us.
07:44In some certain situations,
07:45there's been a debate
07:46and a focus
07:47on the industry
07:48and how to adapt
07:48to the industry.
07:49What I'm saying is
07:50after a summer like this,
07:51how does the climate commissioner
07:53reset, perhaps,
07:54in some ways,
07:55this agenda?
07:55Do you feel
07:56there's a need for a reset?
07:57No, so what we have
07:59been crystal clear about
08:00as a commission
08:01is that there is
08:02no easy way out
08:03and that there is
08:05no alternative
08:06for continuing
08:07with our climate ambition.
08:09President von der Leyen
08:10has been crystal clear
08:11every single time about it.
08:13Same with me.
08:14What we have added to that
08:16is that it is imperative
08:17that we marry,
08:18bridge climate action
08:20with competitiveness
08:21and with independence.
08:23What do I mean by that?
08:25You know,
08:26fully continue
08:26with climate action,
08:27making sure
08:28that we also enhance
08:30the competitiveness
08:31in Europe.
08:32We see that,
08:33for example,
08:34in Finland,
08:35Denmark and Sweden
08:35that is working
08:36very well
08:37and we marry this
08:39to independence
08:40because we don't want
08:41to outsource
08:42this transition
08:42to the Chinese.
08:43So you're saying
08:44anyone who denies
08:45the impact of climate change
08:46has no business with you?
08:48And that we have always,
08:50I mean,
08:50I think most people,
08:51even those in your example,
08:54went beyond
08:56denialism, right?
08:58It's typically
08:58the narrative
08:59that people are using
09:01is,
09:01well,
09:02we cannot afford it.
09:03Well,
09:04you have to afford it
09:06because there is
09:06no alternative
09:07and the price
09:08will only go up.
09:09If you forgo
09:11all the things
09:12that are needed
09:13in the domain
09:13of mitigation
09:14and reducing emissions,
09:16then the bill
09:16and the damage
09:17simply will be
09:19much,
09:20much larger
09:21in the here
09:21and the now,
09:22but certainly
09:23in the long run.
09:24And you're saying
09:24this climate transition
09:25and these measures
09:27cannot be just
09:27outsourced to China.
09:29There's a big debate,
09:31of course,
09:31going into that
09:32October deadline
09:32from the European Commission
09:34and China,
09:35we've heard from
09:36the head of the commission,
09:37being unusually tough,
09:39saying the deficit,
09:40daily deficit,
09:40cannot continue like this
09:41and the commission
09:42needs to work
09:43to get a better deal
09:44by October.
09:45Are you confident
09:45she can get a deal?
09:46And she is fully right
09:48and this is something
09:51that we regret.
09:54This is not something
09:55that we have sought,
09:57but it has been China
09:58that has been flooding
10:00Europe for years
10:01with heavily state
10:03subsidized projects.
10:04It has been China
10:05that has been using
10:06critical role materials
10:08as choking points.
10:10It has been China
10:11that has not been playing
10:12by the rules
10:13of international trade.
10:16So we have no alternative
10:18to make sure
10:19that we level
10:20these things out
10:21and we do respond.
10:22But do you have the tools
10:23and at the same time
10:24the political courage?
10:26Because,
10:26and I have to be fair,
10:27it's not so much
10:28the commission on this,
10:29but yes,
10:29the capitals,
10:30we've seen it repeatedly,
10:31they are too scared
10:31to put China
10:32on a summit conclusion.
10:34On a council,
10:35European council,
10:36they talk about China,
10:37but they don't want
10:38to name it publicly.
10:39Do they have
10:39the political courage
10:40for this?
10:41Look, I'll tell you
10:41what the harsh reality is.
10:43The harsh reality
10:43is that we should have
10:44faced this
10:46five to ten years ago.
10:48So now it will come
10:49with more disruption,
10:50with more friction,
10:51with more costs
10:52to basically make sure
10:53that we change course.
10:56But it will be
10:57much, much cheaper
10:58and much, much more
11:00to our advantage
11:01to do it now
11:02than be wishy-washy
11:04and wait another
11:04five to ten years.
11:05Even if it means
11:06in October
11:07there is a risk
11:08that there is
11:08no understanding
11:09and therefore
11:10the European Union
11:10will have to respond
11:11or look weak.
11:12Look, this is not
11:13a moment to go
11:14into all sorts
11:15of hypotheticals
11:17about what happens
11:18if it's...
11:19But you say
11:20the rebalancing
11:20is absolutely needed.
11:21This is...
11:22And this will not be
11:24just one cliff-edge moment.
11:26This will stay
11:27with us for years
11:28to come
11:28because the dependencies
11:29in many domains
11:31have simply become
11:32too large.
11:32And that is
11:33already dangerous
11:34and uncomfortable
11:35with the most
11:37benevolent
11:38of counterparts.
11:40And the reality is
11:41and it's something
11:42I regret
11:43that China
11:44has not acted
11:45in the way
11:46it should have.
11:46Meaning?
11:47In these...
11:48It has flooded
11:49the marketplace
11:50with heavily
11:51state-subsidized products.
11:53The solar industry
11:54in Europe
11:55has been wiped out
11:56and that's just
11:57one example.
11:58Kill switches
11:59are being included
12:00in windmills.
12:02Espionage happens
12:03at a very high degree
12:05on European soil.
12:07Intellectual property theft
12:08in our most
12:09advanced companies
12:10happens on a weekly basis
12:12and on and on
12:13and on and on
12:14and that is something
12:15no government
12:16and also the union
12:17simply can allow.
12:18Just to wrap
12:19on this point
12:19you're saying
12:20we cannot allow it
12:21but are you confident
12:22you have the tools
12:23to do it?
12:24Because when I hear
12:25the Chinese debate
12:26they don't seem
12:27to be too scared
12:28of the EU
12:29and then they also
12:29look at the US-EU
12:30negotiations
12:31and I'm not sure
12:32they believe
12:33they will retaliate.
12:34But Maria
12:34it is very simple.
12:35To the extent
12:36we don't have the tools
12:37we will have to build them.
12:39There is no alternative.
12:41This is a bullet
12:42we will have to bite.
12:44It is something
12:44we haven't sought
12:45but the reality
12:46is that the rosy days
12:47of the 1990s
12:49are over.
12:50This is the way
12:51actors behave
12:52on the international stage.
12:54And just as a final point
12:55you talk about
12:56how we see
12:56international actors
12:57use leverage points
12:59to exert pressure
13:00on the EU.
13:02In some cases
13:03there's a question
13:03of energy too.
13:05At this point
13:05let me just ask you
13:06and I know
13:06this is not your debate
13:07but when you
13:08or your portfolio
13:08when you head into
13:09the fall and the winter
13:10have you lost hope
13:11that we're going to get
13:12any normality
13:13around the Strait of Hormuz?
13:16Well I think
13:16you should never
13:17lose hope
13:18at the same time
13:19you do need
13:19to face reality.
13:21And I've said this
13:22many times before
13:23this might well
13:24stay with us
13:25for much longer
13:26and even if it ends
13:27the lingering on
13:29effects will be significant.
13:31And we're learning
13:33this lesson the hard way
13:34once again.
13:36The reality is
13:37that if you are
13:3780% dependent
13:39on your gas imports
13:40and 95% dependent
13:41on your oil imports
13:42you just have
13:43a very bad hand.
13:45And the only way
13:46out of this nightmare
13:47is make sure
13:48that we produce
13:49more clean
13:51dirt cheap
13:53European energy
13:53here.
13:54And that means
13:55more nuclear
13:55more solar
13:56more electrification
13:57more wind
13:58all of that
13:59on European soil.
14:00That's the only way out
14:02and that is what
14:03we need to do
14:03and where we put
14:04our money on.
14:05And just as a final point
14:05I ask you about
14:06the Strait of Hormuz
14:07because at the G7
14:08right before the summer
14:09there was an expectation
14:10or a hope
14:11that President Trump
14:12had a deal
14:12and that we would see
14:13the cargo ships
14:14moving.
14:15That is not what
14:16we're seeing on the ground
14:17at all.
14:17How does that factor
14:18into a European winter?
14:20Because there's also
14:22concerns
14:22I'm not sure
14:23how worried you are
14:24that the storage levels
14:25also are not
14:25where they seem
14:26to be or should be
14:27at this stage.
14:28Are we heading
14:29into a difficult winter
14:30when it comes to supplies
14:31but also pricing
14:32for Europeans?
14:33Well first on that
14:34on the assessment
14:35I think we've seen
14:36that movie
14:37some six, seven,
14:38eight, nine times
14:38that we got
14:41statements
14:42that it was over
14:43or almost over
14:44and then it wasn't.
14:47So I would be cautious
14:49to make any prediction
14:51about the very near future.
14:54Again, in the long term
14:55and in the media term
14:57by far our best bet
14:58by far our best bet
15:00is making sure
15:01we move to a completely
15:02different energy system
15:04and that is where
15:05the money should be going.
15:06In the short run
15:07indeed we do have
15:08the obligation
15:09and we do need to do
15:10as much as we can
15:11to make sure
15:12we fill the storages.
15:13We can do that.
15:14Our gas comes primarily
15:16from the US
15:17and from Norway.
15:18That makes it
15:19slightly easier
15:20but of course
15:20it is a global market
15:21so there is a fight
15:23for this gas
15:24potentially coming
15:25to us as well.
15:26But do you really believe
15:27you could get to
15:28let's say 80 by October?
15:30I don't want to
15:32be hung up
15:33on a number
15:34but it's...
15:35What I detect from you
15:36is this is not
15:37a panic stage.
15:38But panic
15:39and particularly
15:40on television
15:41is typically
15:42not a very good idea.
15:43What is clear
15:44is that you need
15:45to be very conscious
15:46as always
15:47about the various
15:49what-ifs
15:49and the what-if
15:51of low storage capacity
15:55in combination
15:56with a brutal winter
15:58is something
15:59you know
15:59no one can afford
16:01even as a scenario
16:02so you need to plan
16:03for that.
16:04Well Commissioner
16:04thank you very much
16:05for joining us.
16:06Thank you very much
16:06Maria for having me.
16:07Thank you very much.