Some 40 MEPs from all political groups except The Left and ID signed a letter condemning China’s coercive actions towards Lithuania on Monday 17 January. They call on the European institutions to respond and take “leadership in defending basic principles of the Single market, against PRC intimidation”.
The letter is addressed to the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, the EU Trade Commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis, and the Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton.
They call for words to be matched by deeds in this conflict “so that no Member State has to shoulder such pressure alone”.
For the signatories, the EU should consider responding with defensive measures towards China. The use of the anti-coercion tool presented in December by the European Commission (see EUROPE 12849/1) is excluded, given the length of the legislative procedure remaining before it comes into force. On the other hand, the Commission has indicated that it is considering opening consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) (see EUROPE 12865/4).
See the letter: https://bit.ly/351JHhs (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)