September 27, 2024 04:40 AM
Talks are underway between China and the EU as both sides seek ways to avert looming tariffs increases.
BLOOMBERG
France’s foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot: EU tariffs on Chinese EV imports are “to create a level playing field.”
France’s new foreign minister said his country supports a European Union plan to impose tariffs on electric vehicles produced in China because of the subsidies Beijing has used to maintain dominance in the sector.
“The intention of the EU by raising those tariffs is not to engage in some form of general protectionist policy with respect to China,” Jean-Noel Barrot said in an interview with Bloomberg. “It is basically to create a level playing field.”
Applying reciprocity measures will allow Europe to remain “more independent, stronger economically and strategically more autonomous,” he said.
Talks are underway between China and the EU as both sides seek ways to avert looming tariffs increases.
At stake for Europe are the tens of thousands of jobs and economic output from the automobile and supplier industries that are facing a profound impact from electrification.
Barrot, 41, took charge of the foreign ministry last week after spending less than two years as junior minister for European Union affairs. His promotion was part of an agreement between President Emmanuel Macron and the new prime minister, Michel Barnier, who took over after months of domestic political crisis.
An economist who previously taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Barrot is seeking to reassure investors after the government said it was studying targeted taxes on the wealthy and large companies in an effort to confront the massive budget deficit.
Ukraine support
Barrot said France was “going to work hard in the coming days and weeks” to finalize a $50 billion loan to Ukraine agreed upon among Group of 7 nations that would be based on profits from seized Russian assets.
“Hopefully we can finalize this to provide a sort of a balloon of oxygen and means for Ukraine to defend itself in the coming months,” he said.
On the conflict in the Middle East, Barrot said a 21-day cease-fire plan offered by France and the US to halt Israel’s clash with Hezbollah “can be acceptable for both parties.”
“We urge both parties to seize this proposal in order for the crisis to cool down,” Barrot said.
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