Mercedes-Benz has joined its Chinese joint venture partner Geely's legal challenge at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) against EU tariffs on China-made electric vehicles, a company spokesperson said on Tuesday.

BMW said in a statement that EU duties on battery electric vehicles “harm business models of globally active companies.”

Tesla, owned by Elon Musk, is taking the European Union (EU) to court over its tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China. Filed last Wednesday with the European Court of Justice (ECJ) by Tesla’s Shanghai division, the lawsuit comes in the wake of similar legal moves by BMW and other Chinese car manufacturers.

BMW will propose this week that the European Union lower its tariff on U.S. car imports to 2.5% from 10%, in line with the current U.S. import tariff, the German automaker's CEO Oliver Zipse said on Tuesday.

Mercedes-Benz Group AG is joining a Geely lawsuit against European Union tariffs on electric cars imported from China, adding to a flurry of legal cases targeting the duties.

Tesla and Germany’s BMW are suing the European Commission, joining a growing band of Chinese automakers to oppose the European Union on its punitive tariffs on electric vehicles.