Event: EU

Today, China has built and launched satellites for Pakistan and in 2026 announced that it will send one Pakistani astronaut to the Tiangong space station. (Representational image) The Chinese space programme has undertaken major strides since it built and launched its first satellite in 1970. In last half a century Beijing has conducted satellite launches, built its own navigation system, carried out successful spacewalks, and built and operated its own space station. China is also in the process of undertaking a manned moon mission by 2030. China has also consistently promoted its space technologies and pushed for cooperation under Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) dubbed the space silk road. This entails “a service network weaved by satellites and ground stations among the BRI partner countries has promoted the space industry to better benefit the local people”. China has also used its launching platform, the Long March, to promote its soft power by launching satellite for a number of other countries.The ‘all-weather friendship’ between China and Pakistan has been replicated in their space cooperation as well. The partnership began in 1990 with China launching Pakistan’s Badr-I satellite, the momentum took time. Today, China has built and launched satellites for Pakistan and in 2026 announced that it will send one Pakistani astronaut to the Tiangong space station. Published - April 28, 2026 08:00 am IST

The EU unveiled in March new "Made in Europe" rules for companies trying to access public funds in strategic sectors including cars, green tech and steel, obliging firms to meet minimum thresholds for EU-made parts Published - April 27, 2026 11:08 pm IST - Beijing Image used for representational purposes only, | Photo Credit: Reuters Beijing slammed on Monday(April 27, 2026) an EU plan aimed to bolster the bloc's industries against fierce competition from China, vowing countermeasures if it is enacted.The EU unveiled in March new "Made in Europe" rules for companies trying to access public funds in strategic sectors including cars, green tech and steel, obliging firms to meet minimum thresholds for EU-made parts. Published - April 27, 2026 11:08 pm IST

The EU is experiencing a prolonged “China shock” as a flood of Chinese EVs into Europe helped push Beijing to a record surplus with the bloc.New data showed China’s trade surplus – where its exports to the EU exceeded imports from the bloc – was $83bn (£61bn) in the first three months of 2026.China sold goods worth about $148bn to the EU in the first quarter, but imported just $65bn from the bloc, according to analysis of 2026 customs data by Mercator Institute for China Studies (Merics). The surplus for the whole of 2025 stood at €360bn.The record was driven in part by Europeans’ apparent unstoppable appetite for Chinese cars, including BYD which has declared it wants to become the world’s biggest automaker.Sales of Chinese electric and hybrid cars almost doubled from $11bn (£8.1bn) in the first three months of 2025 to $20.6bn for the same period this year. This accounted for a third of the value of all Chinese EV exports.When the UK, Norway and Switzerland are included, Europe accounts for 42% of Chinese sales of EVs, which have seen a 50% surge in March in the wake of the Iran war.Merics, which crunched the numbers along with Chinese trade site Soapbox, said China’s economy had so far shown resilience in the face of the Iran war with the “largest quarterly growth figures … since 2022”.Soapbox figures released last week showed that exports from the EU to China fell 16.2% in February, with pork shipments notably in decline.Although China imports a lot of its oil from the Gulf – where traffic through the crucial strait of Hormuz has ground to a near standstill – it has been less impacted than other Asian countries and has been able to tap into substantial reserves.“So far, China’s trade with the world has…