“Our goal is a negotiated solution, but it is clear that, if necessary, we will protect our interests, our citizens, and our businesses. […] We do not necessarily want to retaliate, but we have a solid plan to retaliate if needed,” stated Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, during a speech at the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, this morning.
Following Donald Trump’s recent months’ announcement of a 25% increase in tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum, automobiles, and automotive parts, von der Leyen emphasized that “the immediate response is unity and determination.”
“I have been in contact with our [EU] heads of state and government about the next steps. We have today’s parliamentary debate and will carefully assess tomorrow’s [Tuesday’s] announcements to calibrate our response,” she added, anticipating a new U.S. announcement regarding reciprocal tariffs that will apply to nearly all goods and many countries globally. The next sectors expected to be affected include semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and timber.
According to von der Leyen, this is a “wrong confrontation,” but the EU is “fully equipped” to face it, notably being the largest single market in the world with “the strength to negotiate and the power to resist.”
Regarding the single market, the President of the European Commission admitted that “there are too many obstacles hindering companies” within the community, suggesting that the EU must “do its homework.”
“This is why I instructed the Executive Vice-President [responsible for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, Stéphane] Séjourné to present bold and concrete proposals next month to eliminate some of these obstacles and prevent new ones,” she revealed.
“These reforms are overdue and have now become more urgent than ever. In a stormy global economy, the single market is our safe harbor,” von der Leyen noted.
According to the provisional schedule of the college of commissioners, the strategy for the single market will be presented on May 21.
The single market ensures the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people within the EU.
The immediate European response to the United States also includes “a position of strength” through its capabilities (technological or otherwise) and the diversification of trade agreements, with the EU already having protocols in place with 76 countries and expanding this network with Mercosur, Mexico, and Switzerland.
Also present in the debate, European Council President António Costa argued that “being more competitive on all fronts is not just the right path, but the only path to a stronger Union because being competitive means having more economic resilience.”
The European Union is preparing for tensions with the new Trump administration, particularly regarding trade tariffs, but uncertainty looms over the transatlantic partnership within the community space.
The European Commission holds the competence over trade policy within the EU.
