12 Mar 2025
The EU must act “to protect consumers and business” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen - Xinhua/Shutterstock
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
The EU will target Republican heartlands with €26 billion in ‘counter-measures’ to hit back at tariffs imposed by Donald Trump.
US trade tariffs of 25 percent on global imports of steel and aluminium came into force this morning.
“We firmly believe that in a world fraught with geo-economic and political uncertainties, it is not in our common interest to burden our economies with such tariffs”, said European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, in an early morning press statement.
The EU must act “to protect consumers and business”, she added.
A senior EU official said that “smart” counter-tariffs worth up to €26 billion will be targeted at Trump’s closest allies, hitting products with “a high iconic value, that have a high symbolic value.”
EU tariffs will be imposed on home appliances including fridges and lawnmowers, wood products “important for many other Republican states” like Virginia and Alabama and agricultural goods including soya beans, beef and chicken which are important for Nebraska and Kansas.
“These are mostly Republican states and red states, and purposefully so”, a EU source said.
EU announces counter-measures against the US worth €26 billion, as US tariffs of 25 percent on EU steel and aluminium come into force. @vonderleyen #TradeWar #Trump #EU pic.twitter.com/3qmTv5k0hO
— Georg von Harrach (@georgvh) March 12, 2025
The US also imposed tariffs on EU steel during Trump’s first term in office. The EU’s counter measures were subsequently put on hold in a deal with President Biden, but never abolished.
They will now be unfrozen.
The European Commission says these tariffs – including on Harley Davidson motorbikes, Tennessee Whiskey and Levi jeans – will hit the US to the tune of €4.5 billion.
A bigger round of tariffs worth between €18 and €21 billion will be imposed in mid-April unless Trump backs down.
A half-empty shelf of American whiskey in Toronto. The EU is also launching countermeasures to target American alcohol The Canadian Press/Shutterstock
A half-empty shelf of American whiskey in Toronto. The EU is also launching countermeasures to target American alcohol
The European spirits industry reacted angrily to news that it would once again be caught up in a trade war which, at its heart, is about a global oversupply of steel and other metals.
“Yet again, spirit drinks have become collateral damage in an unrelated trade dispute”, said Pauline Bastidon from trade body, Spirits Europe.
“We fail to understand how this will help with the broader, unrelated dispute on steel and aluminium.”
The US tariffs have been imposed on national security grounds, making use of a law dating back to the 1960s.
The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said the US was imposing tariffs to allow it to “develop a domestic capability”.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
“If you don’t have steel and aluminium, you can’t build warships, you can’t build airplanes,” he added.
“The US Administration has opted to pursue a harmful course of unjustified tariffs, leaving us with no choice but to respond”, said the EU’s Trade Commissioner, Maroš Šefčovič.
But “we will always remain open to negotiations”, said Ursula von der Leyen, who is yet to meet with President Trump.
Canada and Mexico were the first to be hit by Trump tariffs since he returned to the White House and they are also taking countermeasures.
This afternoon, Canada said it would add close to 30 billion Canadian dollars (around €20 billion) to its counter tariffs on the US.
Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne (right to left)
Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne (right to left)
An EU source said although it is in discussions with partners around the world, including Canada, measures against the US are not part of a coordinated effort.
The UK has taken a different tactic and so far has not set in motion retaliatory tariffs on the US. British Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, insisted that “we will keep all options on the table.”
The UK wants to negotiate a mini trade deal with the US and Starmer is at pains to try to keep President Trump on side.
And, unlike the EU, the UK does not have a trade deficit with the US.
“I am disappointed to see global tariffs in relation to steel and aluminium”, said Keir Starmer in the House of Commons earlier.
“We will take a pragmatic approach.”
Asked about the UK’s decision not to react, an EU official said it was up to each country to decide on the basis of their “own sovereignty and taking their own interests into account”.
“But it is indeed clear that the way that Canada has reacted, the way the European Union [is reacting], is perhaps making more headway in the discussions with the United States.”
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