EU act ‘protectionist’ against China
▶ Wind turbine probe distorts meaning of subsidies, not transparent
China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) in the wee hours of Thursday slammed the EU’s planned probe into Chinese wind turbines. The ministry said the EU investigation distorts the definition of subsidies, lacks transparency, and is protectionist behavior that harms fair competition.
The EU on Tuesday announced it would launch a subsidy investigation into Chinese wind turbine suppliers in several EU countries, as the bloc steps up trade protectionism against China’s new-energy industries.
The move drew deep concerns from Chinese officials, business groups and experts. They said that it showed the rising tendency of protectionism in the EU. They urged the bloc to abandon protectionist practices and return to the path of win-win cooperation.
China urges the EU to immediately end its protectionist action and rectify the incorrect move, the Chinese official said.
MOFCOM spokesperson He Yadong also slammed the investigation on Thursday. He said that it clearly violates the principles of free trade. He emphasized that it is seriously disrupting normal cooperation between Chinese and European industries and is a typical example of protectionism.
The MOFCOM also hit back at an updated report by the EU that distorts China’s policies, market environment and economic system.
“We strongly oppose any increase in tariffs on electric vehicles in China, and we look forward to continuing production and maintaining our market presence in China,” Maximilian Butek, executive director at the German Chamber of Commerce in China (Shanghai), told a press conference on Wednesday.
“Accusations of subsidies and overcapacity in China’s new-energy products by Europe carry a strong protectionist tone,” Cui Hongjian, a professor at the Academy of Regional and Global Governance at Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Thursday.
Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of Germany-based political and economic think tank the Schiller Institute, told the Global Times on Thursday that the claim of “overcapacity” is just the latest attempt to find a justification for prioritizing speculative gains over basic research and development.
“Since China has given top priority to innovation as the motor of the rejuvenation of the economy, it has a competitive advantage. It is a deplorable fact that Europe has lost its way,” she said.
China hopes that Europe will abandon protectionist practices and return to the path of win-win cooperation, providing a stable, fair, transparent and predictable competitive environment for green cooperation, He noted.