China calls on EU to hold sincere, flexible dialogue on tariffs

Beijing urged the European Union to further negotiate with China and demonstrate sincerity and flexibility to avoid escalating and expanding trade frictions after the European Commission announced the imposition of anti-subsidy tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles.

Speaking at a daily news briefing on Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian called the anti-subsidy investigations and high tariffs imposed on Chinese EVs by the EU's institution as "a typical act of trade protectionism."

It will harm the industrial chain and supply chain cooperation between China and the EU, damage the interests of European consumers, and undermine the EU's efforts in green transformation and global climate change mitigation, Lin said.

He said dialogue and cooperation are the mainstream of China-EU relations, and mutual benefit is the essence of economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU.

It is in line with the common interests of China and the EU, as well as the general expectations of enterprises and peoples on both sides to properly handle economic and trade frictions through dialogue and negotiation based on mutual respect, he added.

Lin conveyed the hope that the European side will continue to advance negotiations with China in a constructive manner and seek solutions.