Trump presses the EU to give in to commercial negotiations, threatening with additional taxes
Donald Trump. Photo: Andrew Thomas/ Nurphoto/ Shutterstock Editorial/ Profimedia
The commercial negotiators of the US President Donald Trump are putting pressure on the European Union for unilateral reduction of tariffs applied to American products, warning that, in the absence of concessions, discussions to avoid new 20% taxes will not advance, reports Financial Times, according to Reuters.
The US representative for trade, Jamieson Greer, is about to transmit to the European Trade Commissioner, Maros Sefcovic, that the last “explanatory note” from Brussels is under Washington's expectations, sources quoted by the British publication say.
While the European Union insists on a common negotiation framework, the two parties remain too far from an agreement.
Reuters states that he could not immediately verify the information published by FT. Both the European Commission and the US Commerce Representative Office refused to comment.
In March, the United States imposed 25% rates for cars, steel and aluminum from the EU, followed in April by 20% taxes for other European products.
Later, Washington temporarily reduced these rates by half, offering a 90 -day window, until July 8, to reach a wider agreement.
In reply, the European Union suspended plans for the imposition of retaliation rates and proposed the complete elimination of customs duties for industrial goods on both sides.
