The Ministry of Commerce responds to hot issues such as the US levying unmanned agency tax
At the regular press conference held by the Ministry of Commerce on the 20th, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce, He Yadong, responded to hot issues such as the US levying unmanned agency tax and China issuing another ban on the EU's use of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) to conduct cross-border investigations on Chinese entities.
He Yadong said that we have taken note of the US decision to impose 232 tariffs on drones and their components. China has always believed that the US 232 measures are unilateralism and protectionism implemented under the pretext of "national security". In fact, China's exports of drones to the United States are mainly used in civilian scenarios such as agriculture, equipment inspection, film and entertainment.
The US 232 measures generalize the concept of national security, impose differentiated tariff rates on trading partners, discriminate against Chinese related products, seriously damage the interests of Chinese enterprises, disrupt the global drone production and supply chain cooperation order, and further undermine the fair competition market environment. China firmly opposes this. We urge the US to immediately revoke the 232 related tariff measures, "said He Yadong.
At the press conference that day, a reporter asked: On August 19th, China issued another ban on the EU's use of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation to conduct cross-border investigations into Chinese entities. What is the comment of the Ministry of Commerce on this?
He Yadong responded that China has always opposed the EU's abuse of unilateral tools such as the Foreign Subsidies Regulation to suppress Chinese enterprises. We hope that the European side and the Chinese side will move in the same direction, quickly correct the erroneous practices in the FSR investigation, and strengthen communication through intergovernmental dialogue. The Chinese side will closely monitor the movements of the European side and take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard national security and the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises.
He Yadong introduced that in May of this year, the Chinese side issued the first ban order in the Tongfang Weishi case. Recently, the European side has been unreasonably requesting a large amount of information within China that is unrelated to the investigation from relevant banking institutions in China in the JD case. Based on a thorough investigation, relevant departments of the Chinese government have determined, in accordance with the "Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Combating Improper Extraterritorial Jurisdiction over Foreign Countries", that the European side's cross-border investigation practices against Chinese entities in the FSR investigation of JD.com constitute improper extraterritorial jurisdiction measures, and require no organization or individual to implement or assist in the implementation of such measures.
Regarding the recent report "Mass Transit Scams: Rise, Scale, and Costs" released by the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, He Yadong said that the report ignores facts, distorts black and white, and falsely labels normal international trade and investment as "scams", fabricating false narratives of the so-called "shadow transit network". This is a typical unilateralism and protectionism approach aimed at suppressing and blocking Chinese products. The Chinese side strongly disagrees and firmly opposes this.
He Yadong stated that in fact, the high differentiated tariffs imposed by the US are the fundamental reason for threatening global supply chain security. The US attributes its domestic economic problems to external factors, which cannot solve its own deep-seated problems. The Chinese side demands that the US immediately stop irresponsible accusations, cease its impact on Sino US economic and trade relations, and effectively maintain the security and stability of the global supply chain.
What I want to emphasize is that China has always adhered to international economic and trade rules, and will continue to engage in economic and trade cooperation with all parties on the basis of equality and mutual benefit, jointly building a 'mutually beneficial and win-win trade network', and making positive contributions to global development and prosperity, "said He Yadong.