The Ministry of Commerce of China File photo: VCG

China has always believed that interdependence is not a risk, and intertwined interests are not a threat; openness and cooperation are the right path to development. Protectionism cannot enhance competitiveness, and decoupling will only harm others without benefiting oneself, a spokesperson from China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Tuesday.

The spokesperson made the remarks as it is reported that France and Germany submitted an informal document to the European Commission on Monday, calling on the EU to strengthen its use of trade defense measures and roll out a series of new protectionist tools.

China hopes that France and Germany, as major economies of global significance, will uphold openness, cooperation and free trade, abide by WTO rules, and refrain from encouraging the EU to resort to protectionist tools at every turn, still less politicizing economic and trade issues or overstretching the concept of national security, so as to avoid taking the wrong path in the wrong way and ultimately hurting themselves, the spokesperson noted.

Global Times