Trump Promises 25% Tariff on Imports from the European Union

Donald Trump, the President of the United States, announced that his administration will soon impose a 25% tariff on imports from the European Union. In response, the EU warned that it would take a 'decisive' action against such a decision. On Wednesday, March 8, during a cabinet meeting, Mr. Trump told reporters, 'We have made a decision and will announce it soon. [The tariffs] will generally be 25% and will include cars and everything.' The EU has imposed a 10% tariff on imports of passenger cars, which is four times higher than the 2.5% tariff imposed by the United States on passenger cars. U.S. officials have also complained about the value-added tax in European countries, which is at least 17.5%. In his remarks on Wednesday, Trump accused the EU of 'cheating the United States.' The U.S. President recently signed an order to raise tariffs on goods from any country that imposes higher tariffs on the U.S. According to the White House, it does not matter whether these countries are strategic competitors of the U.S. or allies, including European countries. However, the European Commission deemed Trump's decision to raise tariffs on imports from the EU as 'an unjustifiable barrier to free and fair trade' and warned that the EU would take 'immediate and decisive action.' Stefan Sejourni, Vice President of the European Commission, reacted to Trump's remarks by stating, 'The EU will respond immediately and decisively to unjustified barriers to free and fair trade, including when tariffs are used to challenge lawful and non-discriminatory policies.' He added, 'The EU will always protect European businesses, workers, and consumers against unjustified tariffs.' Trump claims he has decided to impose reciprocal tariffs 'for the sake of fairness' and wants to impose the same taxes on his partners since they tax the U.S. as well.