Politicized protection hurts cooperation

Slammed by China's Commerce Ministry as a "naked protectionist act" that creates and escalates trade frictions by "destroying fair competition" in the name of "maintaining fair competition", the European Union is imposing anti-subsidy tariffs of up to 38.1 percent on electric vehicles shipped from China from July 4, on top of the 10 percent duties for all imported EVs.

It is how those tariffs have come about and how they will be implemented that belies the European Commission's claim that they are being imposed in the name of fairness.

Rather than being in response to the "threat of economic injury" to EV producers in Europe as a result of the "unfair subsidies" the Chinese automakers enjoy, as it said when announcing the tariffs, "the European Commission is holding high the banner of green development with one hand and wielding the big stick of 'protectionism' with the other hand to politicize and weaponize economic and trade issues", as the Commerce Ministry said in a statement in response to the announcement.