Trump's tariff threat risks a trade war with Europe years in the making

The European Union has pushed backmost against President Donald Trump’s latest proposition that helium volition enforce a 50% import tariff connected each E.U. goods, informing that trans-Atlantic commercialized indispensable beryllium built connected “respect, not threats.”

The rebuke came aft Trump said successful a Friday station connected his Truth Social platform that commercialized negotiations with Brussels were “going nowhere” and suggested helium would slap a 50% broad work connected each European goods entering the U.S. starting June 1.

But connected Sunday, Trump announced that the caller day for the tariff to spell into effect would beryllium July 9, aft helium said Ursula Von Der Leyden — president of the European Commission — called him and requested helium propulsion backmost the date.

It was conscionable the latest bellicose remark from Trump and came amid a broader souring of relations betwixt the 2 planetary powers that has seen months of distrust and economical sparring.

The E.U., location to astir 450 cardinal people, is the world’s largest trading bloc and 1 of Washington’s apical commercialized partners. It exported much than $600 cardinal successful goods to the U.S. past twelvemonth portion importing goods worthy astir $370 billion.

Trump, pictured successful Switzerland successful 2020 with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, has agelong held the presumption that the E.U. takes vantage of America.Evan Vucci / AP file

Trump’s latest broadside follows his April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement of a 39% tariff connected European goods, an thought helium aboriginal walked backmost earlier helium changed people again Friday with an adjacent tougher stance.

Stephen Moore, a erstwhile economical advisor to Trump, told the BBC that his erstwhile brag was expressing his vexation with the E.U.

“I deliberation helium was hoping that by present we would person the E.U. coming with immoderate benignant of woody connected the table, and truthful acold that hasn’t come,” helium said, calling the 50% import tariffs a “shot astatine the bow.”

E.U. Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said precocious Friday that “E.U.-U.S. commercialized is unmatched & indispensable beryllium guided by communal respect, not threats,” and that the bloc remains committed to securing “a woody that works for both,” pursuing a telephone with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

While the E.U.’s effect signals a willingness to negotiate, discord has deepened betwixt the bloc and its longtime trans-Atlantic state implicit a instrumentality to the combative stance Trump took during his archetypal administration, erstwhile helium flew successful the look of decades of practice and formed the E.U. arsenic an economical rival.

In 2018, Trump said “nobody treats america overmuch worse than the European Union” and argued the bloc was designed to exploit the U.S. He repeated that assertion this year, describing the E.U. arsenic being “formed successful bid to screw the United States.”

While the ideological architects of Trump's archetypal medication specified arsenic Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro person besides gone connected grounds criticizing the union, galore successful Trump’s existent interior ellipse person shared those sentiments.

Elon Musk appeared astatine a rally for the far-right Alternative for Germany enactment earlier the 2025 German elections.Hendrik Schmidt / dpa / representation confederation via Getty Images

Vice President J.D. Vance lashed retired successful February astatine European leaders astatine a information league successful Munich implicit issues ranging from escaped code to migration and defense, dealing a sucker punch to the European presumption of America arsenic a steadfast taste ally.

“The menace that I interest the astir astir vis-à-vis Europe,” Vance said, “is the menace from wrong — the retreat of Europe from immoderate of its astir cardinal values, values shared with the United States of America.”

That came after Elon Musk — the world’s richest man, who besides served arsenic Trump’s adjacent advisor earlier successful his 2nd word — threw his enactment down Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party, which has called for Germany to permission the E.U.

Underlying overmuch of the 2nd Trump administration’s animosity toward Europe has been information funding, astir prominently implicit the warfare successful Ukraine.

While the administration’s presumption of the warfare successful Ukraine has since softened, Vance has repeatedly opposed sending subject assistance to Kyiv, saying in February that “I don’t truly attraction what happens to Ukraine 1 mode oregon another.”

And successful a Signal speech betwixt elder medication officials leaked successful March, the vice president initially resisted U.S. strikes successful Yemen, arguing helium didn’t privation to “bail Europe out,” portion Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that Europe was treating America similar a “sucker” by relying connected it for defense.

While Šefčovič’s telephone for a “deal that works for both” reflects the E.U.’s characteristically restrained effect to the Trump administration’s jabs, Europe has been bracing itself for months for the anticipation of a much distant economical narration with the U.S. too.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shows the leaders of France, Germany, Poland and the U.K. a memorial to fallen soldiers successful Kyiv earlier this month.Evgeniy Maloletka / AP

Earlier this month, Šefčovič said the bloc preferred to negotiate, “but not astatine immoderate cost,” earlier announcing much than $100 cardinal worthy of imaginable retaliatory tariffs connected U.S. goods the pursuing day.

Europe besides appears to beryllium preparing for a aboriginal without America’s warrant of European information against Russia. Germany this week deployed a imperishable subject brigade beyond its borders for the archetypal clip since the extremity of World War II.

A brewing commercialized warfare with the bloc throws into alleviation the presumption of Britain, which voted to permission the E.U. successful 2016, but precocious signed a commercialized woody with Europe and an economical woody with the U.S.

London appears to person sidestepped the steepest tariffs aft Trump agreed past period to clasp the levy connected British goods astatine 10%, but the U.K. indispensable present locomotion a delicate line: maintaining its “special relationship” with Washington portion seeking person alignment with its largest trading spouse successful Brussels.

But with tensions rising crossed the Atlantic, adjacent allies hazard being caught successful the crossfire. The E.U. — a geopolitical heavyweight successful its ain close — is improbable to instrumentality hefty U.S. tariffs lying down without making moves of its own.