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The spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce answered questions regarding the meeting between Minister Wang Wentao and EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Mr. Shevchovich, during his visit to France.

Question: Recently, Minister Wang Wentao held a meeting with Commissioner Shevchovich of the EU Commission in Paris. Could the Ministry of Commerce introduce the specific details?

Answer: On June 3rd, Minister Wang Wentao and Commissioner Shevchovich held a meeting in Paris. The two sides conducted focused, candid and in-depth discussions on urgent and important issues such as the EU's anti-subsidy case against Chinese electric vehicles, China's anti-dumping case against European brandy, and export control. They instructed the respective working teams to accelerate their efforts to prepare for economic and trade matters for this year's important agenda between China and the EU.

Question: Has there been any new progress in the price commitment negotiations for the anti-subsidy case against Chinese electric vehicles? Could you introduce the latest situation?

Answer: Minister Wang Wentao and Commissioner Shevchovich conducted professional and in-depth discussions on the electric vehicle case, which pushed the case towards a proper resolution. Currently, the price commitment negotiations for the EU-China electric vehicle case have entered the final stage, but further efforts are still needed from both sides. The European side proposed to discuss new technical paths simultaneously. China will assess the feasibility of the European side's proposals from the legal and technical perspectives. Both sides instructed their working teams to intensify their efforts to find mutually acceptable solutions and properly resolve trade disputes in accordance with their respective laws and WTO rules.

Question: What are the new developments in the anti-dumping case against European brandy, and have the Chinese and European sides reached an agreement on the price commitment? We noticed that Minister Wang Wentao met with the French Ministerial Representative for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the European Commission, Saint-Martin, during his visit to Paris. Did he discuss this case with the French side?

Answer: Minister Wang Wentao and Commissioner Shevchovich had a friendly and candid exchange of views on the brandy case, and also briefly informed the French side of the relevant progress. Currently, French enterprises and relevant associations have voluntarily submitted price commitment applications to China. The Chinese investigation authority has reached consensus on the core terms of the price commitment with them. China is reviewing the complete text of the price commitment. If the review is successful, it plans to issue a final ruling announcement containing the price commitment text on July 5th. China has fully demonstrated its sincerity in resolving trade disputes through dialogue and consultation, and hopes that the European side will also act in the same manner and properly address China's concerns to create conditions for further expansion of cooperation between China and the EU.

Question: We noticed that the two sides discussed the issue of export control on rare earths. Could you introduce some of the latest developments?

Answer: Minister Wang Wentao further clarified China's export control policies to the European side, emphasizing that implementing export control on rare earth and other items is an international practice. China attaches great importance to the concerns of the European side and is willing to establish a green channel for applications that meet the conditions to accelerate the approval process. He instructed the working team to maintain timely communication on this matter. Minister Wang Wentao proposed that the European side should act in the same manner and take effective measures to facilitate, guarantee and promote compliant trade of high-tech products to China.

Source: China News Service