The European Union is ready to join China in fighting protectionism worldwide but Beijing also needs to show it can play fair on trade and investment, the bloc's trade chief said on Monday.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese imports, blaming China's trade practices for U.S. job losses.
Beijing says it will work with Washington to resolve any trade disputes, but state media have warned of retaliation if Trump takes the first steps toward a trade war.
"If others around the world want to use trade as a weapon, I want to use it as a tonic, a vital ingredient for prosperity and progress," Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom told a business conference on EU-China relations, without explicitly mentioning Trump or the United States in her comments.
