Belgium PM Says Europe Ignored India’s Warning on China, Calls Economic Dependence a ‘Rude Awakening’

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has acknowledged that European countries failed to heed India’s earlier warnings about the risks of excessive economic dependence on China, saying Europe is now facing a “rude awakening” over the consequences.

Speaking at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event in New Delhi on Thursday, De Wever criticised the impact of foreign overcapacity and below-cost imports on European industries. Without directly naming China, he indicated that the country that benefited most from such practices was a well-known neighbour.

De Wever said Europe had allowed foreign products to enter its markets for years, weakening domestic industries while creating dependencies that could potentially be used as economic and political leverage. He acknowledged that India had identified the risks much earlier and had cautioned European nations, but those warnings were not taken seriously at the time.

The Belgian prime minister said Europe was now drawing lessons from its experience and reassessing the consequences of strategic economic dependencies. He stressed that countries should protect their essential economic interests while continuing to support free trade. According to De Wever, free trade can work effectively only when countries have confidence that their core interests will not be compromised. He argued that defending national interests was necessary to establish the trust and mutual respect required for a stable trading system.

He also warned against allowing critical economic dependencies to become tools of coercion. De Wever said Europe did not want to find itself in a position where dependence on another country could be weaponised against it.

His comments came during his official visit to India from September 2 to 4, which has focused on strengthening economic and strategic relations between the two countries. India and Belgium have agreed to expand cooperation in areas including defence, trade and investment, critical minerals, semiconductors and advanced technologies.

The two sides have also placed greater emphasis on building resilient supply chains amid growing global economic uncertainty. Cooperation in critical minerals and high-technology sectors is expected to help both countries reduce vulnerabilities linked to concentrated global supply chains. De Wever’s remarks also highlighted the growing strategic importance Belgium attaches to India. His comments on China come at a time when European countries are increasingly seeking to diversify their economic partnerships and reduce exposure to strategic dependencies.