EU Urges US to Honor Trade Deal as Tariff Dispute Deepens

The European Commission has confirmed that EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic has called on the United States to urgently return to the terms of last year's trade agreement. The Commission said it would be "beneficial" if the main elements of the deal came into force before its first anniversary at the end of July.

Sefcovic met US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Paris for talks lasting around an hour and a half, focusing on the most pressing issues in trade relations. A central topic was President Donald Trump's threat to raise tariffs on imports of cars and trucks from the EU to as much as 25%.

The European Commission also said Sefcovic had presented Washington with a timetable under which the EU plans to lift tariffs on imports of US manufactured goods, as previously agreed. However, the move is unlikely to take place before June.

The EU is pushing for a return to the so-called Turnberry terms, which envisage a 15% tariff rate including exemptions for the bloc. The situation is further complicated by a US Supreme Court ruling that led Washington to impose a blanket 10% surcharge, pushing overall tariffs on EU goods above 15% in some cases.

(reuters, max)