As the 27 commerce ministers met for the primary time since Donald Trump’s re-election, the usage of defensive commerce instruments in opposition to the US may very well be an possibility in case of Trump’s aggressive commerce coverage, in response to French minister Sophie Primas .
New commerce protection measures are prepared to be used ought to Europe’s relations with the United States deteriorate after Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the French commerce minister stated forward of a gathering of commerce ministers EU commerce in Brussels.
“We do not wish to degenerate right into a commerce warfare, however Europe should even be prepared to indicate its power and use its new safety instruments,” French Trade Minister Sophie Primas stated upon arriving on the assembly.
The assembly was the primary such commerce debate between ministers since President-elect Trump gained the US election on a platform that included a menace to impose 20% tariffs on all items coming from the EU to the US .
One of those new commerce measures within the EU’s arsenal, in response to a Council of the European Union official, is the anti-coercion regulation adopted in 2023 to guard the EU from coercion by third international locations.
If dialogue with the Trump administration fails, the regulation consists of tariffs, quotas, licenses, restrictions on the appropriate to take part in public procurement procedures, measures decreasing the entry of overseas buyers to the EU or the entry of banking entities and insurance coverage to the EU capital markets.
“The European Commission has acquired a transparent mandate from ministers to interact with the brand new US administration on a constructive agenda, whereas being prepared to enhance this constructive agenda with concrete countermeasures prepared for use if and when essential,” a EU diplomat after the press convention. encounter.
During his first time period, Trump imposed tariffs of 25% on metal and 10% on aluminum, whereas the EU retaliated with focused tariffs on US items, together with Harley Davidson bikes and Bourbon whiskey.
In October 2021, Brussels and the Biden administration agreed to resolve the dispute over aluminum and metal, and on the finish of final 12 months they prolonged the truce for an additional 15 months, stopping tariffs price billions from taking impact on transatlantic commerce euros mechanically on January 1st. But the tariff suspension settlement is predicted to final solely till shortly after the following US administration takes workplace.
