Poland’s Duda wants more balanced trade with China as Brussels discusses tariffs

5 months ago 12

Polish President Andrzej Duda voiced hope during a visit to Beijing on Monday (24 June) his country could boost its exports to China, just as the EU is set to begin talks with Bejing on tariffs it threatened to impose on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs).

“The relationship between Poland and Beijing has lasted for 75 years and, in spite of any events, has a+lways been based on mutual respect and recognition,” Duda said on Monday, adding that he hoped those relationships will be reinforced even more.

Duda said he would like to see a more balanced trade exchange with China by boosting Polish exports. The volume of bilateral trade has been growing steadily over the past 20 years, but imports of Chinese goods have grown much more dynamically than exports.

In 2023, China was Poland’s second largest source of imports, with total import value having exceeded €47 billion in 2023, according to the latest data by the Polish Development Fund (PFR).

Given China’s role in the Polish economy, maintaining a positive relationship with Beijing has been of crucial importance for Duda – even more so amid the ongoing trade tensions between the EU and China.

Duda has met with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping several times since taking office in 2015, including during the February 2022 Olympics, which were boycotted by several world leaders, who accused Beijing of human rights violations against the Uighur minority.

The European Commission unveiled earlier in June it would impose tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) imported into the European market, citing the need to combat excessive state subsidies provided by China.

The EU’s provisional duties of up to 38.1% on imported Chinese EVs are set to apply by 4 July, with the investigation set to continue until 2 November, when definitive duties, typically lasting five years, could be imposed.

Meanwhile, China’s commerce ministry said its head, Wang Wentao, and Valdis Dombrovskis, the executive vice president of the EU executive, had agreed to start consultations on the matter, which officials of both sides confirmed to Reuters on Saturday (22 June).

During the weekend, German Vice-Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck also visited China. Germany, one of the world’s key car producers, is the main source of China’s combustion car imports and any retaliatory steps by Beijing would badly hit Germany’s automotive sector.

Habeck told Chinese officials in Beijing over the weekend it was important to understand “that these are not punitive tariffs”.

The minister said that, while countries such as the US, Brazil, and Turkey had used punitive tariffs, the EU “does things differently” – pointing to the nine-month investigation the Commission had carried out to examine in detail whether Chinese companies had benefited unfairly from subsidies.

Beijing’s support for Russia

During his meeting with Chinese officials, Duda also discussed the ongoing war in Ukraine, which he said “interferes with mutual trade relations (…) and the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative.”

“We hope this war will end as soon as possible with just peace,” he told the media.

However, Duda’s office kept silent about whether the president had touched upon the accusations of Beijing supporting the Kremlin in its war activity.

As reported by investigative journalism outlet Oko, analysts point out that, while the Polish president spoke warmly of the Chinese authorities, NATO says they are posing an increasing threat to the Alliance, as reiterated a number of times by Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

Interviewed by BBC News during his visit to Washington last week, Stoltenberg said Beijing was “trying to get it both ways”, by supporting Russia’s war effort while also trying to maintain relationships with European allies.

“This cannot work in the long run,” he said.

[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic]