WASHINGTON –– Lawmakers warned Wednesday that China has quietly expanded its political and economic influence across Europe while the continent remained focused on countering Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“China and Russia share a vision for the world where the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must,” said Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the United States Helsinki Commission.
The commission met to examine how China has been gaining access to key economic sectors across Europe through economic investments and political pressure. Experts argued that China’s activities could undermine NATO cohesion, as could Russia’s geopolitical ambitions, if European governments fail to respond by reducing reliance on Chinese technologies and products.
Wilson said China’s strategy benefits directly from Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine.
“Russia’s patron, China, is only becoming the true winner in this war,” Wilson said. “Xi Jinping has complemented Putin’s brute force with a patient, persistent approach to establishing his global dominance.”
Experts testified that China’s influence campaign in Europe goes far beyond traditional diplomacy and often relies on economic leverage and political pressure to shape government decisions. Audrye Wong, a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said China’s strategy includes building political support while discouraging criticism of Beijing’s policies.
“One (strategy) is to bolster friends and silence critics of the Chinese Communist Party and its policies,” Wong said. “China seeks to undermine transatlantic cooperation and European unity through a divide-and-conquer strategy.”
Valbona Zeneli, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, said China’s growing alignment with Russia has changed how many European policymakers view Beijing.
“China and Russia are strange bedfellows, however, they have shared strategic alignment,” said Zeneli. “One of the main trends that has changed perceptions in Europe has been the support that Beijing has given to Russia for its war in Ukraine.”
The commission also heard testimony from Vidmantas Verbickas, Lithuania’s vice minister of foreign affairs, who described how China used economic pressure against his country after Lithuania expanded ties with Taiwan.
“Exports to China fell by 99.7 percent, essentially near zero,” Verbickas said. “This was not a commercial dispute. It was political pressure designed to change a sovereign policy decision.”
Lithuania mainly exported products like dairy, beef, and grain to China, as well as laser technologies. The drop in exports came after the country opened a representative office for Taiwan in its capital city, Vilnius.
Lawmakers also raised concerns about China’s growing influence in technology and infrastructure across Europe, warning that reliance on Chinese companies could create long-term security risks.
Several Western governments, including the U.S., have long restricted or banned Huawei equipment from their national networks over espionage-related national security concerns. Huawei became a major point of contention between the U.S. and its allies during the rollout of 5G networks. U.S. officials like Ellzey warned that allowing Chinese companies to build critical telecommunications infrastructure in Europe could give China potential access to sensitive data networks.
“(Europe) might be repeating the same mistake when it comes to 6G,” said Rep. Jake Ellzey, R-Texas, referring to security debates surrounding Chinese telecom company Huawei.
Ellzey said similar concerns could arise as countries begin developing next-generation technologies such as 6G. Currently, 11 European Union countries depend on Huawei 5G networks including Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria, according to EuroNews.
Witnesses urged stronger coordination between the U.S. and European allies to counter China’s growing influence in technology and other industries and to strengthen democratic institutions.
“China’s rise is a defining geopolitical challenge of the century,” Zeneli said.