Key European Union Nations Support Tougher Policy Against China in Brussels

Leading member states of the European Union (EU) have come together in Brussels to intensify pressure for the implementation of a strict trade policy, particularly targeting China’s significant industrial overcapacity. The new policy plans to expedite the imposition of safeguard duties, include comprehensive protective measures, and grant additional powers to restrict entities that violate regulations.

The crucial China-focused debate in Brussels was preceded by the drafting of a letter signed by Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, France, and Lithuania. These countries emphasized the need for the EU to take aggressive action against what they call ‘systemic and structural industrial overcapacity,’ a phrase clearly aimed at Beijing.

This initiative comes ahead of the European Commission’s policy discussions on China scheduled for Friday, which are expected to set a new strategic direction. Governments and industry groups have repeatedly expressed concerns about the economic pressures caused by Chinese competition. The letter has not yet been publicly released; its contents were first reported by the Financial Times.

The letter calls for EU safeguard measures to be applied more rigorously to prevent advancing anti-dumping cases that target daily production volumes but rather to lift overall regional impediments. These measures would allow the imposition of tariffs or import quotas to protect local industries from damage due to rapid import growth. Historically, such measures have been used sparingly, notably to restrict imports of Chinese steel and ferroalloys. The South China Morning Post has analyzed the letter. Additionally, the letter proposes introducing a new ‘resilience tool’ that would be activated when European supply sources are excessively concentrated beyond defined limits in one location.