Days ahead of the U.N.’s global negotiations on climate change, China and other developing countries said trade restrictions should be part of the talks.

  • MachineFab812
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    2 days ago

    China is absolutely right here. They won’t meet their commitments with their trade restricted like so, and the rest of the world won’t meet their commitments with China constrained by EV tarrifs.

    The “developed” world, in particular, has shot itself in the foot here. Who gives a fuck about “losing ground economically/industrially” if the expense of “staying ahead” is the survivability of the planet itself?

    Don’t answer that question. Anyone who thinks they are rich or whatever enough to “escape earth” and the consequences of failure here is of an idiocy beneath noting.

    • MrMakabar@slrpnk.net
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      2 days ago

      It really does not matter too much to the planet, if products consumed in the EU produce emissions in China or the EU. However the EU has well working emission trading sytem, which in the coming years, will make carbon intensive manufacturing all but impossible in the EU. That becomes useless, if companies just end up producing in China instead, using old fossil fuel based factories. So having a carbon tariff is a great option. If China indeed cares about the planet, then they can produce in a sustainable fashion and export with no carbon tariff to the EU. Also the from the EU carbon tariff is lowered by the cost of carbon in the producing country. So China can just increase their carbon price to meet the EU level.

      If China goes green, then the carbon tariff is zero. If Chinas carbon price is as high or higher then the EUs, then the carbon tariff is zero.

      As for cars there is the option for manufacturers to show how high Chinese subsidies are. If they do not get subsidies, then they do not have to pay tariffs. Btw the EU has a fossil fuel car phase out date in law, unlike China.

      China is the biggest emitter in the world. If they do not lower their emissions, which this clearly shows they have no intresst in doing, then we are all fucked.

      • When did China surpass the US to become the biggest emitter? I thought that wasn’t going to happen until 2050, as per https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2023/global-warming-carbon-emissions-china-us/

        I’d dispute that China has no interest in reducing their emissions. See this other post by the OP, https://slrpnk.net/post/14732947 showing that they’re on track to reduce their emissions this year.

      • MachineFab812
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        2 days ago

        More EVs sold by China in Europe or the US means more EV’s made. No other country is producing enough EV’s, let alone cheap ones, to make up the difference. More EV sales would mean more money those companies have to research and produce other Green products.

        Also, the tarrifs I’m complaining about aren’t Carbon-related, nor imposed by China(where on earth did you even get that absurd idea?), but they would stack in an awful manner.

        • MrMakabar@slrpnk.net
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          2 days ago

          The EU is a massive car exporter and the car industry in Europe is not doing that great right now. That is due to European companies producing EVs in China and then bringing them into the EU. So the EU trying to force them to keep car factories open is just logical. Hence the probe and the targetted tariffs, based on the subsidies they recieve from the Chinese government.

          Also, the tarrifs I’m complaining about aren’t Carbon-related, nor imposed by China(where on earth did you even get that absurd idea?), but they would stack in an awful manner.

          The article you post under is literally called: “China Confronts Europe Over Climate-Based Trade Restrictions”. Also I have no idea, where I wrote anything about China imposing tariffs. Just that those are not fixed, but flexible based on certain criteria.