EU discusses response to Trump letter in customs dispute

Brussels. The new escalation in the tariff dispute with the United States is a top topic at an EU meeting in Brussels this Monday. Trade ministers from member states are discussing how to respond to US President Donald Trump's announcement that he will impose a 30 percent tariff on imports from the EU starting August 1.
They had actually hoped that after long negotiations between the EU Commission and the USA, they would be able to talk about an agreement in principle to defuse the trade conflict.
It is now eagerly awaited whether all EU member states will support Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's course. She announced on Sunday that she would not use the option of imposing initial counter-tariffs on imports from the US as early as Tuesday. This could have been justified by the fact that Trump's previous tariff increases had so far gone unanswered. The EU had only suspended the countermeasures due to the ongoing negotiations.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) hasn't given up hope for an agreement with the US. The two and a half weeks until the August 1 deadline must be used to find a solution, he said in an ARD "Summer Interview." "I'm really committed to this." Like French President Emmanuel Macron, he is in favor of massive retaliatory tariffs if things are to remain that way. "But not before August 1."

Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) comes to the ARD summer interview.
Source: Michael Kappeler/dpa
The Chancellor warned urgently of the consequences for the German economy if no agreement were reached. "If that were to happen, we would have to put large parts of our economic policy efforts on the back burner. Because that would overshadow everything and would hit the German export industry hard," Merz said.
EU Commission President von der Leyen aims to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion, if possible, by Trump's new deadline of August 1. In his letter published on Saturday, Trump expressed his openness to further talks. He wrote that if the EU is willing to open previously closed trade markets to the United States and remove trade barriers, he might consider adjusting the tariff announcements. At the same time, he threatened even higher US tariffs in the event of EU countermeasures.
German State Secretary Thomas Steffen is expected to attend the discussions in Brussels. In addition to the tariff dispute, the meeting will also address ongoing EU trade talks with countries such as Australia, India, Indonesia, and Thailand. A discussion on the ongoing difficult trade relations with China is also planned.
RND/dpa
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