Krisis Timur Tengah, UE Mengakui Telah Melakukan "Kesalahan Strategis"

“Europe’s abandonment of this reliable, affordable low-emission energy source is a strategic mistake.” On March 10, European Commission President von der Leyen stated at the opening of the nuclear energy summit held in France.

Von der Leyen was referring to nuclear energy. At this time, the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran has entered its second week. Although international oil prices have retreated somewhat after Trump’s statement that “the war will end soon,” they remain high, rising significantly compared to before the conflict began.

European countries such as Germany, Italy, and the UK rely heavily on natural gas imports. The rise in oil and natural gas prices has dealt a particularly heavy blow to many European nations.

After the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the EU significantly reduced its energy imports from Russia. To punish Russia after severing one of its arms, the Middle East crisis has now exposed the EU’s vulnerability in energy issues.

It is in this context that von der Leyen said on the 10th: “In terms of fossil fuels, we are completely dependent on expensive and unstable imports. This puts us at a structural disadvantage compared to other regions.”

Von der Leyen is from Germany, which is one of the EU countries actively reducing nuclear power.

At this summit, von der Leyen announced the establishment of a €200 million fund for European nuclear innovation. She said, “In 1990, one-third of Europe’s electricity came from nuclear energy, but now this proportion is only about 15%.”

Compared to Europe, China is much better prepared. Over the years, China’s nuclear industry has continued to advance, and renewable energy sources such as solar and wind have made rapid progress. “China has been preparing for years to respond to the Iranian oil crisis,” said von der Leyen on the same day. The Wall Street Journal reported that the global energy market turmoil caused by the Middle East war is precisely an emergency scenario China has long been preparing for.

The article states that out of concern that regional conflicts could cut off oil supplies and impact the economy, Beijing has been working to reduce dependence on imports, while also building large-scale strategic reserves and promoting energy diversification. A core principle of China’s energy security concept is: rely on domestic resources as much as possible to meet its needs. Given the limited reserves and high extraction costs of oil and natural gas, China is promoting electricity applications in feasible areas, such as replacing fuel vehicles with electric vehicles. China has abundant coal reserves for power generation, as well as a large supply chain for solar panels and wind turbines. China also has the world’s largest power grid system.

How strong is China’s power grid system? Bloomberg reported last month that China’s electricity consumption in 2025 will surpass 100 trillion kWh, more than double that of the United States, and even exceed the total annual electricity consumption of the EU, Russia, India, and Japan combined.