European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday rebuffed U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to hike tariffs on European cars, warning Washington to stick to the terms of its trade deal with Brussels.
Speaking out for the first time since Trump’s Friday announcement that he would impose 25 percent tariffs on EU-made automobiles, von der Leyen flatly stated that “a deal is a deal.”
“We have a deal, and the essence of this deal is prosperity, common rules and reliability,” she said during a press conference at the EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan.
While the EU is in the “final stages of implementing the remaining tariff commitments,” the Commission president added, “the U.S. has the commitment … where alignment with the agreed ceiling is still outstanding.”
She also stressed the bloc is “prepared for every scenario.”
During the same press conference, European Council President António Costa said EU leaders “fully support” the Commission’s response to Trump’s latest trade threat.
French President Emmanuel Macron made that backing explicit at a separate press conference in Yerevan with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
“Agreements have been signed and must be honored; if they were called into question, it would reopen everything,” he said. “And if a country is threatened with fresh tariffs, the EU has the tools to respond, and should use them, because that’s what they are for.”
Macron added that while options were “on the table,” close allies like Brussels and Washington “have much better things to do than to wave around threats of destabilization.”
Trump’s latest tariff threats marked a sharp escalation in the tumultuous commercial relationship between Washington and Brussels.
His announcement came after EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič visited Washington and said the Turnberry accord remained intact.
Under the terms of the agreement struck last July, U.S. tariffs on European cars were set at 15 percent. In exchange, Brussels agreed to lower industrial tariffs, purchase $750 billion in U.S. energy and invest $600 billion in the American economy.
Following Friday’s shock announcement, the Commission initially avoided directly confronting Trump, saying only that the EU would “keep [its] options open.” A spokesperson added the bloc was implementing the deal “in line with standard legislative practice” and keeping Washington informed.
Šefčovič was due to meet U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Paris on Tuesday in a fresh attempt to steady talks after Trump’s tariff threat rattled transatlantic trade relations.
Clea Calcutt contributed reporting.