The European Union (EU) plans to place tariffs on about $28 billion worth of U.S. goods next month in response to tariffs President Donald Trump has imposed on imported steel and aluminum.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, announced the trade retaliation on Wednesday. The tariffs include renewed duties the EU put in place during the first Trump administration, as well as new taxes on goods aimed to fall most heavily on Republican-led states, according to the Associated Press.
“As of this morning the United States is applying a 25% tariff on imports of steel and aluminum. We deeply regret this measure,” von der Leyen said in a statement. “Tariffs are taxes. They are bad for business, and even worse for consumers. These tariffs are disrupting supply chains. They bring uncertainty for the economy. Jobs are at stake. Prices will go up. In Europe and in the United States.”
“The European Union must act to protect consumers and business. The countermeasures we take today are strong but proportionate. As the US are applying tariffs worth 28 billion dollars, we are responding with countermeasures worth €26 billion,” the statement continued.
The EU tariffs are set to begin on April 1 and be fully in place by April 13. Von der Leyen stressed that the EU remains “open to negotiation” on trade.
“We firmly believe that in a world fraught with geopolitical and economic uncertainties, it is not in our common interest to burden our economies with tariffs. We are ready to engage in meaningful dialogue,” von der Leyen said.
Trump has leveraged tariffs and threats against Canada, China, and Mexico for weeks, but the EU was not impacted until the president placed 25% tariffs on aluminum and steel products on Wednesday. Trump made clear last month that he believes the European Union has cheated the United States on trade, however.
“They’ve really taken advantage of us,” Trump said in a February Cabinet meeting. “They don’t accept our cars, they don’t accept, essentially, our farm products. They use all sorts of reasons why not. And we accept everything of them.”
“I love the countries of Europe. I guess I’m from there at some point, a long time ago, right?” the president added. “But [the] European Union was formed in order to screw the United States … that’s the purpose of it, and they’ve done a good job of it. But now I’m president.”
