China eager to resolve EU’s ‘divide and conquer’ tactics during EV talks: analysts

China is anxious to fend off the European Union’s “divide and conquer” tactics during their electric vehicle (EV) tariff negotiations to maintain a united front and steer future talks, analysts said.

Chinese EV manufacturers should, they added, also not be influenced as the EU insists on the right to approach firms individually.

China and the EU have said that headway has been made, with both sides set to continue exchanges next month, focusing on price commitments.

But separate discussions that bypass Beijing’s overall strategising may complicate collective talks as they enter a crucial stage, analysts said.

“This is the EU’s bid to lure some Chinese EV firms to transfer tech and production,” said Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at the Renmin University of China.

“The bloc may dangle lower tariffs or other favourable treatments in one-on-one interactions.