The EU is “preparing for further countermeasures” to protect its interest, Ursula von der Leyen said after after Donald Trump announced a 20% levies on European goods, urging the US to “move from confrontation to negotiation”.
“We are already finalising a first package of countermeasures in response to tariffs on steel. And we are now preparing for further countermeasures, to protect our interests and our businesses if negotiations fail,” the Commission president said on Thursday from Samarkand, Uzbekistan, where she will attend the first-ever EU-Central Asia summit.
“We will also be watching closely what indirect effects these tariffs could have, because we cannot absorb global overcapacity nor will we accept dumping on our market,” she added.
The US President on Wednesday imposed a minimum 10% tariff on all countries, with the EU put on a list of 60 “worst offenders” and slapped with a higher tailored rate of 20%. The levies are scheduled to come into force next Wednesday.
Tariffs on automobiles made outside the US of 25% were also announced with immediate effect.
Sweden and Ireland have already said in statements that they “regret” the additional tariffs.
“We don’t want growing trade barriers. We don’t want a trade war. That would make our populations poorer and the world more dangerous in the long run,” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said.
“But – Sweden and the Swedish Government are well prepared for what’s happening now. We stand on solid economic ground, with world-class public finances,” he added.
Ireland’s Tanaiste, Simon Harris, said in a statement that the bloc “must remain calm and measured in our response”, adding that “the EU and Ireland stand ready to find a negotiated solution with the US”.
“Together with my government colleagues, my officials and the EU we will be reviewing the situation and the best way to respond in the coming hours and days. The EU will have to respond in a proportionate manner which protects our citizens, our workers and our businesses,” he added.
The bloc, von der Leyen said earlier this week in an address to the European Parliament, holds a lot of cards: from trade to technology to the size of our market” and would “approach these negotiations from a position of strength”.
The EU recorded a surplus of goods with the US €156.6 billion in 2023 but a deficit of services worth €108.6 billion.
Brussels already has two lists of US products that could be hit with tariffs, EU officials previously said, including one that contains goods that have been subject to suspended tariffs since 2018. Further measures may be necessary, the officials said, that could potentially target services.
In her short address on Thursday, von der Leyen said she agrees with Trump “that others are taking advantage of the current rules” and that she is “ready to support any efforts to make the global trading system fit for the realities of the global economy.”
“But I also want to be clear: Reaching for tariffs as your first and last tool will not fix it,” she said, adding: “Let’s move from confrontation to negotiation.”
