MERICS Europe-China Resilience Audit - Update 2025

European countries have made only limited progress in strengthening resilience-building measures and reducing vulnerability towards China over the past year. This is the conclusion from the 2025 MERICS’ Europe-China Resilience Audit. The audit, compiled by Grzegorz Stec, Head of the MERICS Brussels office, maps China-related vulnerabilities and resilience-building measures based on 98 indicators, covering eleven European countries. The indicators are divided into categories of economy, security, politics and society. Here are a few key take-aways from the audit: Member States’ progress remains insufficient in scale and pace given Beijing’s clear readiness to exploit EU vulnerabilities. The EU needs to brace for more pressure and friction in relations with China. China has applied its instruments of economic statecraft more actively – also toward the EU – since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. Beijing’s rare earths licensing restrictions are a threat to critical EU industries, including its strategically vital defence sector. At the same time, Beijing’s techno-industrial system is colliding with more and more sectors of the European economy, like the battery and automotive industries. The EU urgently needs to improve its ability to withstand pressure and limit Beijing’s leverage to ensure it can protect its interests. Resilience-building and de-risking efforts are not geared toward decoupling or limiting interlinkages with China across the board, but toward ensuring the EU’s ability to manage risks without compromising long-term development. The MERICS China Resilience Audit features detailed country profiles compiled by Esther Goreichy, Grzegorz Stec and Abigaël Vasselier and graphics mapping out vulnerabilities and dependencies. MERICS experts Rebecca Arcesati, Wendy Chang, Daria Impiombato and Grzegorz Stec also zoom in on four areas European countries urgently need to address: strengthening China competence in European governments, countering export controls, data regulation in the automotive industry and transnational repression.