EU to Prioritize Response to US Tariffs

During a meeting in Luxembourg, trade ministers from the 27 member states agreed to prioritize negotiations, as they also readied a retaliatory response.

A European Union flag flutters outside the EU Commission headquarters, in Brussels, on Feb. 1, 2023. Reuters/Yves Herman/File Photo

European Union ministers on April 7 broadly agreed that the bloc should prioritize negotiations to remove tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The 27-nation bloc is currently facing 25 percent import tariffs on steel, aluminum, and cars, with “reciprocal” tariffs of 20 percent due to kick in from April 9 for almost all other goods under Trump’s new policy of responding in kind to countries that he says impose high barriers to U.S. imports.

Trade ministers met in Luxembourg on April 7 to debate the EU’s response, as well as to discuss relations with China.

Many said the EU’s priority was to launch negotiations with the United States and avert an outright trade war.

Michal Baranowski, Polish undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, said: “The EU deeply regrets the new U.S. tariffs and remains committed to dialogue, seeking a negotiated solution acceptable for both sides.

“Today’s Council shows the member states are united and determined to defend the interests of citizens and businesses alike.

“We support the European Commission and our response will be guided by patience and firmness. All options remain on the table.”

Echoing Baranowski’s sentiments, Dutch Trade Minister Reinette Klever told reporters: “We need to remain calm and respond in a way that de-escalates.

“The stock markets right now show what will happen if we escalate straightaway. But we will be prepared to take countermeasures if needed to get the Americans at the table.”

EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic described his two-hour exchange with U.S. counterparts on April 4 as “frank,” telling them the tariffs were “damaging, unjustified.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also announced at a news conference in Brussels that the EU stood ready to negotiate a “zero-for-zero” tariff pact for industrial goods.

The bloc is likely to approve during the week of April 7 through April 11 an initial set of targeted countermeasures on up to $28 billion of U.S. imports ranging from dental floss to diamonds, in response to Washington’s steel and aluminum tariffs rather than the broader reciprocal levies.

However, Trump signaled a 200 percent counter-tariff on EU alcohol if the bloc goes ahead with an earmarked 50 percent duty on U.S. whiskey, prompting concern from the major wine and spirit exporting nations of France and Italy.

The 27-nation bloc is expected to produce a larger package of countermeasures to U.S. reciprocal and car tariffs by the end of April.

However, Brussels has less to target than Washington, given that U.S. goods imports into the EU totaled 334 billion euros (about $364 billion) in 2024, against 532 billion euros (about $580 billion) of EU exports.

Laurent Saint-Martin, the French foreign trade minister, said the bloc should leave nothing off the table, including the potential use of the EU’s Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI), which would allow it to target U.S. services or limit U.S. companies’ access to public procurement tenders in the EU.

“We cannot exclude any options on goods or services and, however we approach it, open the box to the European tool which is very comprehensive and which can be extremely aggressive,” he said.

Others, however, struck a more cautious tone.

Simon Harris, the Irish minister for foreign affairs and trade, described the ACI as “very much the nuclear option“ and said he believed that the majority view in the EU was not to go near it, at least for now.

Robert Habeck, the German minister for economic affairs and climate action, whose Green Party will not be involved in the next governing coalition in Berlin, said the EU should realize that it is in a strong position—if it remains united.

But regarding countermeasures, he said, “If we have every (EU) country coming out saying they have a problem here with red wine and there with whiskey and here with pistachios, then we will end up with nothing.”

Reuters contributed to this report.