Merz and Macron want the EU to hit back harder — and faster — against trade threats

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron have jointly urged the European Commission to be granted sweeping new powers that would let it swiftly block imports deemed a threat to the EU’s economy or security. In a letter and accompanying position paper sent on Monday, the leaders of Europe’s two largest economies called for a “comprehensive framework” that would complement the existing trade‑defence toolbox with fresh legal instruments, allowing the Commission – currently headed by Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, who is about to travel to Beijing for the final round of talks in a four‑month effort to rebalance EU‑China trade – to restrict or even cut off goods from countries creating “severe and systematic distortions” in the single market. The proposal seeks to make it harder for individual member states to block action, proposing that measures would stand unless a “reverse” qualified majority of capitals voted to overturn them, effectively giving the Commission a “second‑strike weapon” in the event of an escalating trade war.

The push for faster, more decisive tools reflects growing frustration that the EU’s current anti‑coercion and anti‑dumping mechanisms are too slow and cumbersome to address the challenges posed by China’s massive trade surplus – roughly €1 billion a day – and its dominance in critical‑mineral supply chains. A senior German official, speaking on condition of anonymity, likened the proposed instrument to the United States’ Section 301 tariffs, arguing that Europe needs comparable countermeasures to protect vulnerable sectors when trade rules are ignored. The French side emphasized that dialogue with trading partners would continue, but that the EU must be ready to act without waiting months or years for consensus, suggesting that the activation procedure mirror the existing anti‑dumping process, which allows the Commission to act without prior approval from all capitals. Critics have noted that the current Anti‑Coercion Instrument (ACI) – often described as the EU’s “trade bazooka” – is hamstrung by lengthy investigations and the need for a qualified majority, a hurdle the new proposal aims to eliminate.

The Franco‑German initiative has been welcomed by key EU figures, including Bernd Lange, head of the European Parliament’s trade committee, who praised the shift in Council mindset, and Sander Tordoir of the Centre for European Reform, who called the letter a “watershed” moment signalling a desire to blunt the “second China shock” on European industry. The move also marks a notable change in Germany’s stance; previously a reluctant actor in strengthening EU trade defences, Berlin now actively backs concrete proposals, according to Tordoir. The letter forms part of broader Franco‑German negotiations on the bloc’s top economic issues, launched after a July ministerial meeting in Cologne where the two leaders signalled a converging, more aggressive posture toward China. In addition to the new trade‑defence powers, the proposal urges the Commission to develop instruments that diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on Chinese imports, a goal already reflected in the Commission’s announced plan to create a diversification tool encouraging manufacturers to shift away from cheap Chinese inputs.

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