New EU Foreign Affairs Chief Wants to Work With Trump on China, Russia Sanctions

The EU and the U.S. should tighten sanctions against both China and Russia, the EU’s next top foreign affairs official said, saying the two sides need to work closely to break up an emerging alliance between Moscow and Beijing.

Kaja Kallas, speaking during her EU Parliament confirmation hearing this week, stressed that the EU needs “to get our act together” and “really show our resolve” in helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia. That includes working with the incoming Trump administration to continue supplying weapons and ammunition to Ukraine while also maintaining sanctions against Moscow and other countries supporting Russia, Kallas said, specifically mentioning Iran, North Korea and China.

“Without China's support to Russia, Russia would not be able to continue its war with the same force,” said Kallas, who is expected to be the EU’s next high representative for foreign affairs and security policy. “China needs to also feel a higher cost.”

Kallas said Russia believes it can “outlast” both Western sanctions and support for Ukraine, and said she will urge the Trump administration against focusing solely on countering China in a way that de-prioritizes pressure against Russia. “If the U.S. is worried about China or other actors, then they should also be worried about how we respond to Russia's war against Ukraine, because we see how Iran, North Korea, China” are “working together,” she said.

“When it comes to the other actors, I think we have to be very clear that it has consequences.”

She said the EU and the U.S. should signal to China, Iran and others that they will face a “higher cost” if they continue to support Russia. “What more should we wait for to really come up with a stronger plan in this regard?” Kallas said she’s “willing to take this up and discuss” stronger sanctions with EU member states.

Kallas also will discuss the issue with the Trump administration, adding that she had previously met with Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and will “seek meetings” with Trump and his senior advisers “to form common policies” against both Russia and China. “What I see globally around the world is that we are the strongest allies, and we have to keep sticking together,” she said.

Several Parliament members said they were concerned that the Trump administratio won’t follow the “rules-based international order” and may choose to pursue its own trade restrictions without coordinating alongside allies. Kallas said she’s a “strong believer in multilateralism” and noted that the EU should also work with other allies on pressing geopolitical issues, such as countries in South America and Central America and Africa.

“But of course, the United States is our biggest ally,” she said. “So we [need to] work closely together with them to achieve results.”

Kallas was also asked whether she supports an indefinite extension of EU sanctions against Russia as opposed to the current process, which requires the bloc to renew certain sanctions every six months. Although she said she would support an indefinite renewal, she noted that all EU member states also would have to agree, and said she doesn’t believe there’s “unity there.”