China’s Probes Into EU Pork, Brandy, and Dairy Are ‘Unwarranted’: EU Trade Chief Says

China’s anti-subsidies investigations into brandy, pork, and dairy shipped from the European Union (EU) are “unwarranted” and “lack sufficient evidence,” the bloc’s trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said on Sept. 19.
Dombrovskis conveyed this message during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Wentao, who visited Brussels in an effort to stop the imposition of extra tariffs on made-in-China electric vehicles (EVs).
“He stressed that these investigations are unwarranted, are based on questionable allegations, and lack sufficient evidence,” the Commission said. Dombrovskis “thus called for these investigations to be terminated and informed the Chinese side that the EU will do its utmost to defend the interests of its industries.”
China’s Ministry of Commerce said Wang and Dombrovskis have agreed to negotiate a mutually acceptable solution.
The EU’s 27 member states are scheduled to vote in the coming weeks on whether to impose five-year EV duties.
The introduction of EV duties could be defeated only if a qualified majority of 15 EU members representing 65 percent of the EU population votes against the proposals.
Before meeting the EU trade chief, Wang sat down with representatives from Chinese and European EV makers on Sept. 18 and vowed to persist in the negotiation efforts “until the last minute,” according to his ministry.
Wang also engaged with senior trade officials in Rome and Berlin earlier this week. During a meeting with German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck on Sept. 17, Wang said the EU’s tariffs hike could “seriously interfere” with trade and investment cooperation, impacting the interests of both Beijing and Berlin, according to China’s readout.
Trade tensions have risen in recent months after the Chinese communist regime opened a series of tit-for-tat trade probes into EU products.
Huang said in a recent interview with The Epoch Times that China’s exports were initially driven by labor-intensive industries such as household appliances, furniture, and clothing.
The CCP’s goals are not only about reviving its economy. By flooding the global market with China-made EVs, the Party aims to harvest data from a larger user base in other countries and push its control further beyond the borders, according to Huang.
Developing the EV industry, according to Huang, is likely to be part of the CCP’s strategy to “tighten the grip over the entire society.”
Huang said EVs are more than a part of China’s efforts to break the current bottleneck in exports and regain the global market for high-value export commodities.
“It’s really all about the surveillance of both Chinese and global users. They collect personal data, location information, and various other data through a multitude of sensors in electric vehicles,” Huang said. “If you use your phone or laptop in the car, they [the CCP] might also be watching or listening.”