EU sues China to WTO

 EU sues China to WTO

The European Union (EU) today filed an application with the World Trade Organization (WTO), accusing China of discriminating against Lithuania.

The EU says tensions between China and Lithuania are affecting other European exports. The European Commission (EC) confirmed that it has collected evidence of China's actions. These include refusing customs clearance for Lithuanian goods, refusing applications to import goods from Lithuania and pressuring other European companies to remove Lithuania from their supply chains when exporting to China.

The AP said the diplomatic tension between the two countries appeared after Lithuania in November 2021 approved the representative office of Taiwan (China) in the capital Vilnius to be named Taiwan instead of the traditional Taipei.

The building where the representative office of Taiwan island is located in the capital Vilnius, Lithuania on November 18. Photo: AFP

The building where the representative office of Taiwan island is located in the capital Vilnius, Lithuania on November 18. Photo: AFP

Beijing expelled the Lithuanian ambassador and recalled its ambassador to the country. Last month, Lithuania closed its embassy in Beijing. It also accuses China of blocking its goods at the border.

"Bringing the matter to the WTO is not a hasty decision for us. However, after many failed bilateral settlement efforts, we realized that there was no other way but to ask the WTO to join," said Vice Chairman. European Commission (EC) President Valdis Dombrovskis said, "The EU has always acted in unison and expeditiously on violations of WTO rules that threaten the integrity of the single market. We also use use diplomatic means to avoid escalation."

SCMP said Beijing denied the embargo and told EU officials that it was Chinese enterprises that decided not to buy goods from countries that "attack China's sovereignty". Responding to the EU bringing the matter to the WTO, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said the dispute with Lithuania "is a political issue, not an economic one". This is not an issue between China and the EU.

Under the WTO's dispute settlement rules, the EU would first have to "apply for consultations". The bloc will formally request China to provide more information on Beijing's measures to amicably resolve the issue. If there is no result after 60 days, the EU can ask a WTO panel to settle the dispute.