China warned the European Union not to introduce additional trade restrictions after internal discussions in the EU on relations with Beijing, saying it would respond firmly to any new measure it considers discriminatory, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
China's Ministry of Commerce announced today that the European Union must uphold free trade and fair competition and reject protectionism and unilateral actions.
According to the ministry, if Brussels introduces “unilateral trade instruments“ or discriminatory restrictions, China will “respond decisively“ and take “effective measures“ to protect its interests.
The warning comes after internal talks on trade policy between European Commission officials responsible for EU-China relations held on Friday.
No decisions were taken at the meeting. It was intended to help prepare discussions at the upcoming G7 leaders' meeting and the European Union summit in mid-June.
After the talks, the “European Commission“ said that China remained an important partner and that the dialogue would continue.
At the same time, the Commission noted that the current state of trade and investment relations “is not sustainable“, pointing to the growing link between economic issues and security and the need for “a firmer and more coherent response“ by the EU.
Beijing said that communication channels with the European Union remained open and pointed to ongoing discussions to establish a mechanism for consultations on trade and investment.
Relations between the two countries have been strained over EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, mutual investigations into market practices and Chinese controls on the export of key raw materials.