Bavarian EPP chief defies party line on EU’s China tariffs

Bavaria’s Minister-President Markus Söder broke with his centre-right party line and spoke out against EU tariffs on Chinese goods during a visit to China on Wednesday, where he also criticised the French.

Bavaria, one of the EU’s richest regions and considered the heartland of the European People’s Party (EPP), with around 40% of voters regularly voting for the bloc’s largest centre-right party, has seen its prime minister question the EPP’s pledge to “defend strategically important sectors against unfair practices”.

“When it comes to trade, we rely on partnership instead of EU tariffs,” he stressed after meeting Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang in Beijing on Wednesday.

Söder also cautioned against “debates such as those being held by the French, who are calling for European protective tariffs”.

This also contradicts previous statements by his party chief, Manfred Weber, who called for punitive tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles in 2023 after the European Commission announced an investigation into whether Chinese producers compete fairly.

“Bridges connect more sustainably than walls,” Söder said after visiting the Chinese Wall the day before.

Bavaria’s trade volume with China was around €53 billion in 2023, making it the wealthy region’s most important trading partner.

The trip was not without its critics, who called it “Panda-Politics,” adding that it may have stolen some of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s thunder, who is making his visit in mid-April.

(Nikolaus J. Kurmayer | Euractiv.de)

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