China Appeals to WTO Over EV Tariffs Imposed by European Union

China has lodged a complaint with the World Trade Organization over the European Union’s final tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle imports, escalating a dispute that’s straining an already fraught relationship.

Beijing brought the case to the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism on Monday to “safeguard the development interests” of the EV industry, according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce. The ministry reiterated its strong opposition against EU’s tariffs, criticizing the levies are “trade protectionism in the name of countervailing.”