Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) — China on Thursday called on the European Union to view bilateral economic and trade relations without emotion and prejudice, recalling that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the EU and will see important high-level exchanges.
Commenting on recent statements by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yongqian said at a regular briefing for journalists that China hopes the European side will step up communication, openness, action and consultation, rather than resort to blaming, protectionism, worrying and labeling.
The official representative drew attention to the fact that the EU leader’s statements do not reflect the objective state of the current Chinese-European trade and economic relations and the progress achieved as a result of dialogue between the relevant departments of the parties.
On market access, He Yongqian pointed out that China has been steadily expanding high-level opening-up, completely lifting restrictions on foreign investment in the manufacturing sector and actively increasing imports from Europe through platforms such as the China International Import Expo.
The European Union, on the contrary, has in recent years resorted to protectionism under the pretext of fair trade, abused trade protection instruments and exploited loopholes in international trade rules to create unilateral instruments that are contrary to the fundamental principles of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the spirit of free trade, the official representative stated.
According to He Yongqian, the EU often initiates investigations against Chinese enterprises over subsidies and other issues, which leads to continuous regression of market opening and deterioration of the business environment.
On the topic of subsidies, the official representative pointed to the EU's double standards, noting that the largest source of subsidies has traditionally been the EU itself. Its subsidies, which are provided to the aviation, agricultural and other sectors, have been recognized as violations by the WTO.
According to incomplete statistics, the EU plans to provide various subsidies totaling more than 1.44 trillion euros from 2021 to 2030, with EU member states offering additional subsidies worth hundreds of billions of euros, He Yongqian noted.
Speaking about public procurement, she noted that in reality there are many hidden barriers in the European public procurement market and it is not at all as fair and open as the European side claims, while the EU has measures in place that stimulate the purchase of European goods.
The European side is using international procurement instruments to take measures to restrict the participation of Chinese companies and products in public procurement of medical equipment, He Yongqian noted, adding that it was against this backdrop that China had to take mirror measures to protect the legitimate interests of its enterprises.
Touching on the topic of export controls, the official representative stressed that China's measures are cautious and proportionate, covering far fewer items than the EU's export control list. He Yongqian recalled that China has created a special "green corridor" for accelerated review and approval for European enterprises, while the EU's export controls in the high-tech sector are characterized by lengthy approvals and cumbersome procedures.
Speaking about so-called excess capacity, the spokeswoman said excess capacity should not be measured solely by production or export volume. She said China's new energy sector is actually facing a shortage of capacity in the global and long-term.
As He Yongqian noted, the problem is not China's “overcapacity” but rather the EU's excessive anxiety caused by chronic underinvestment in R&D and the declining competitiveness of European industry.
The official added that China hopes to work with the EU to expand mutual market access, strengthen dialogue on government procurement and export controls, deepen cooperation in supply chains, and advance WTO reform to bring more stability, certainty and positive energy to the construction of an open global economy. –0–
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