The European Union's proposed “Made in Europe” law is being cast as a possible flashpoint with China, as Brussels weighs rules aimed at protecting the bloc’s market and industrial base. China has called the plan institutional discrimination and urged the EU to drop requirements it sees as unfair [1].
Beijing wants Brussels to scrap rules on foreign investors, local content, intellectual property, technology transfer and public procurement restrictions, according to the facts provided [1]. The law is also being discussed as one that could affect Chinese interests in non-EU European states, widening its reach beyond the bloc’s 27 members [1].
French MEP Christophe Grudler is leading negotiations on the measure, and he says it should cover closely integrated countries outside the EU. “It should include closely integrated countries such as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland,” Grudler said [1].
The next step is the continued negotiation of the law under Grudler’s lead, with the final scope of the measure still under discussion [1].
