Donald Trump threatens tariffs on Europe. The European Commission announces “additional complications”
See also: This may be the biggest EU-US clash in years. Trump cracks tariffs like a whip, Europe says enough is enough. And he brings out the big guns
On the other hand Olof Gill – spokesman for the European Commission – said on Monday in Brussels that an attempt to impose customs duties on selected EU countries would cause additional complications, including: could hamper the smooth functioning of transatlantic trade in goods. It would also be troublesome – as the spokesman noted – among others. for American importers.
The European Commission recalls the customs union in the EU
Olof Gill recalled that the EU functions as a single market and within a customs union, which ensures the free movement of goods between Member States without the need to carry out internal customs formalities. In accordance with EU regulations, goods produced in the EU are marked as having EU origin.
Third countries have the right to request information about which specific Member States the products come from. However, tracing this can be complicated because many EU goods are produced in integrated, cross-border supply chains spanning multiple member countries. Moreover, goods produced in the EU can be transported without customs formalities and therefore without the obligation to trace their origin.
– It means that from a customs and operational point of view, it is very difficult in practice to attribute goods exclusively to one Member State, given that production and processing processes are often spread throughout the EU – explained the European Commission spokesman.
See also: The EU threatens Donald Trump with a trade bazooka. “The most serious crisis in decades”
On Saturday, Donald Trump threatened to impose 10 percent tariffs from February 1 on eight European countries that in recent days sent small groups of troops to Greenland to take part in the Denmark-led Arctic Endurance exercises. Six of those mentioned are EU countries. The tariffs would affect Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and the United Kingdom.
The announced tariffs would increase to 25% in June. and remain in force – as Trump announced – until the US concludes an agreement on the purchase of the island, which is an autonomous territory of Denmark.
