Despite a no from Germany, the EU Commission can impose additional tariffs on electric cars from China. A majority of the 27 member states would have been needed to stop the plans. The taxes should take effect by the beginning of November at the latest.
The EU can impose additional tariffs on electric cars from China. The EU Commission said that a sufficient majority of EU states did not speak out against the project. This means that it can decide to introduce taxes of up to 35.3 percent.
Germany was unable to assert its position. Although the most populous EU country voted against the tariffs in Brussels, in order to be able to prevent them, a majority of the EU states would have had to speak out against the plan, which together make up at least 65 percent of the total population of the EU.
According to information from diplomatic circles, in the end ten EU states voted for the measure and twelve abstained. Only five spoke out openly against the tariffs. According to the information, the opponents of the taxes represent a good 20 percent of the EU population.
Traffic lights disagree – Scholz decides
The federal government was also initially divided until Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) made a decision shortly before the vote. In the traffic light coalition, the FDP-led ministries of finance and transport pushed for a German no vote in Brussels. Scholz was also critical of possible punitive tariffs.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Foreign Office, both led by the Greens, had advocated abstaining from the vote in order to continue looking for a negotiated solution with China.
The European Commission announced the additional tariffs after an investigation accused Beijing of promoting electric cars with subsidies that distort the EU market.
It is up to the Commission whether the import duties will come into force at the beginning of November. But if a solution is reached with China at the negotiating table in time, the tariffs can be stopped.
The EU Commission wants to introduce tariffs now
After the vote by the EU states, the Commission announced that it had the necessary support to impose the planned punitive tariffs on electric cars from China. At the same time, she emphasized that she wanted to continue discussions with the Chinese government about the matter.
The Federation of German Industries (BDI) called for further efforts to find a solution. “The decision on countervailing duties in the market for electric cars must under no circumstances mean the end of the discussions,” emphasized BDI Managing Director Tanja Gönner.