The European Union’s trade chief threw a rebellious tone after Donald Trump threatened to place 50% tariffs on all goods from the bloc.
The US president made his announcement after expressing his dissatisfaction with the pace of progress in trade deals with the EU. The new rates will take effect from June 1st.
EU trade commissioner Malossyvchovich posted to X after a call with US trade representative Jamieson Greer and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.
“The European Commission is ready to work in good faith. The EU-US trade is unparalleled and must be guided by mutual respect rather than threats. We are ready to protect our interests.”
Trump had posted on Truth Social, a social media website he owned.
He went on to claim that there was a trade deficit of $250 million a year with the EU. “Our discussion with the EU is not going anywhere,” he said. Previously, he added that there are no duties on products built or manufactured in the United States.
Trump later told reporters: “I’m not looking for a deal – we set up a deal,” he said immediately, adding that a major investment in the US by a European company might delay him.
The EU is one of the largest trading partners in the United States, sending over $600 million (528 billion euros, £443 billion) last year, buying $370 billion worth of it.
The US has imposed a 20% “mutual” rate on most EU goods since April 2, but after a week they cut them in half to allow trade consultations. It maintains a 25% import tax on iron, aluminum and vehicle parts, threatening similar movements on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and other goods.
At the same press conference, Trump said it could add a 25% tax to all Apple and Samsung phones purchased by US customers. It will take place at the end of June, he said. His comments fell into leading US stock indexes and European stocks, the Associated Press reported.
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European politicians said they were disappointed with the news of further tariffs from the US. French trade minister Laurent Saint Martin said Trump’s new threat had nothing to help negotiate.
“We’re keeping the same line: de-escalation, but ready to respond,” he wrote to X.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told ANSA News Agency that the target remains “a tariff of zero.”
Speaking to a reporter in The Hague, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schuf supported the EU’s trade talks strategy and said the EU is likely to see this latest announcement as part of negotiations. “We’ve seen before that tariffs can go up and down in meetings with the US,” he said.
Mishal Martin of Ireland’s Taoisiech said Trump’s proposal was “very disappointing.” He continued: “It was clear in my view that tariffs are always causing damage to all aspects.”
In a statement posted to X, he said: “Taxes at the suggested level not only push prices up, they seriously undermine one of the world’s most dynamic and important trading relationships, but disrupt the wider global trade.
“We don’t have to go down this path. Negotiations are the best and only sustainable way.”
German MEP Bernd Lange, head of the EU’s trade committee, threatens to apply a counter-attack against the United States. “We will not allow ourselves to put pressure on ourselves and will try to start negotiations objectively next week,” he said in a comment reported by the German newspaper Die Welt. “If negotiations fail, the European Union is strong enough to implement measures such as rebuttals to offset the economic damage.”