The head of the EU's diplomatic service, Josep Borrell, said that he considers the outbreak of a trade war with China almost inevitable. “We should not be naive, we are not interested in engaging in a trade war with China, but perhaps it is inevitable,”, he says.
According to Borrell, the likely deterioration of trade relations between the EU and China “corresponds to the logic of events”. Europe must not enter into a systematic confrontation with China or limit its rise. “We cannot resist the rise of China”, concluded the diplomat.
On August 20, the European Commission (EC) announced the introduction of tariffs on Chinese electric cars. According to the position of official Brussels, these duties were applied based on the results of an investigation to counter the “illegal subsidies” that Beijing allegedly provides to Chinese car manufacturers. The Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China described the EC's decision as a manifestation of "unfair competition".