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A group of five EU countries led by France is urging Brussels to make broader use of tariffs and other protective trade measures to counter what they describe as unfair trade practices by China and other countries, according to Politico.
France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and Lithuania submitted a joint non-paper to the European Commission and other EU member states on May 22, calling for more frequent investigations into unfair trade practices and proposing the creation of new trade defense tools.
The initiative comes as the European Commission works on what officials describe as a “more assertive and effective trade defense policy” aimed largely at responding to economic pressure from Beijing. Brussels is expected to hold an internal strategic discussion next week on the competitive threat posed by China.
Although China is not explicitly named in the document, the text clearly alludes to Beijing, stating that “some of the European Union’s major trading partners are undermining the multilateral system by creating new trade barriers or fostering systemic and structural overcapacity.”
The five countries — representing all of the EU’s largest economies except Germany — called on the Commission to more actively launch trade defense investigations when entire industrial sectors are affected by market distortions. They also urged the EU to bring more trade disputes before the World Trade Organization and allocate additional staff to investigative bodies.
The document further proposes adding “economic security” as a criterion when deciding whether to initiate trade defense investigations that could lead to tariffs or other restrictions.
“Such an approach would help preserve the Union’s remaining production capacities in strategic sectors and value chains, thereby protecting the industrial base,” the paper states.
Other proposals include technical amendments to existing legislation to prevent foreign companies from circumventing EU trade investigations, as well as allowing the European Commission to impose anti-subsidy duties directly on companies rather than only on countries or products.
The group also proposed creating a new “resilience instrument” — a cross-sector trade defense mechanism that could be used in cases where current tools are ineffective — as well as introducing additional tariffs or tariff quotas to protect European producers.
Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron called on the EU to follow the United States’ example in protecting strategic industries through stronger trade measures.
The debate comes amid growing concern in Europe over China’s new 15-year industrial strategy unveiled in March, which focuses heavily on advanced manufacturing sectors such as electric vehicles, pharmaceuticals, and robotics — areas where European companies fear intensifying competition.
