Foreign
NEGOTIATOR from the European Parliament and the 27 EU member states on Tuesday announced an agreement on a new defensive tool to shield against economic intimidation.
A negotiator representing the EU legislature, Bernd Lange, tweeted that the instrument defends economic interests “in the event of attempts to give political pressure through trade and investment measures,’’.
Exclusion from the European Union’s single market, public tenders, and punitive tariffs on non-EU countries trying to interfere in EU political decision-making were among measures available as a response to the anti-intimidation instrument.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm responsible for trade policy, is set to implement the measures.
EU member states will have the deciding role, however, in what constitutes an attempt to exert political pressure through economic coercion.
The EU executive conceived the new trade instrument after years of tariff threats from former U.S. President Donald Trump over international policy disputes.
The commission mostly designed the proposal with Beijing in mind, however. China has grown increasingly sensitive to international criticism and has imposed trade restrictions against Lithuania.
In 2021, China reacted angrily to the Baltic EU member state’s attempts to develop closer ties with Taiwan and excluded Lithuania from its customs system.
China reacted angrily because it views Taiwan, a democracy with an independent government since 1949, as part of its territory and a breakaway province, not an independent state.
Meanwhile, the European Parliament and the EU member states must now adopt the legislation before it enters into force. (Xinhua/NAN)
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Tags: Bernd Lange European Parliament
