Chaos unleashed by Trump has Europeans building bridges with China

Two robots box while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visits Unitree Robotics in Zhejiang Province, China. In the exhibition hall at Unitree Robotics in Hangzhou, Friedrich Merz smiled and applauded the martial arts display by a platoon of humanoid warriors. But when a robot boxer advanced toward him, punching the air with its red-gloved fists, the German chancellor flinched, a look of alarm crossing his face as he appeared to realize the danger posed by an autonomous fighting machine. It was also a moment that crystallized for Merz the power of China's technology, according to a person familiar with his thinking. He saw it, too, as a sign of how far behind Germany has fallen and how European Union regulation holds back their efforts to catch up, the person said, asking not to be named discussing the chancellor's private views. The trip, last month, has triggered a broader reckoning that is starting to settle in across Europe: Maybe de-risking from China is just too big a task.