EU leaders have signaled that the bloc would be prepared to retaliate against the US if Donald Trump implements his threats to impose tariffs on European goods.
Speaking ahead of their informal meeting in Brussels, they repeatedly called for calm and emphasized the value of EU-US cooperation but indicated that they would not shy away from responding with tariffs if targeted first.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said the bloc was “carefully listening” to Trump’s comments and was “preparing on our side” to respond if necessary.
However, she emphasized that “there are no winners in trade wars” and pointed out that China would be the only beneficiary of such a scenario.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that if Europe “is attacked on the trade front… [it] will need to stand up and, for that reason, respond.”
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the EU must do everything it can to avoid “completely unnecessary and foolish tariff wars,” adding that it would be a “cruel paradox” if the bloc were forced into a trade war with a long-time ally.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who is already involved in a special crisis with Trump over the future of Greenland, said that while she usually “would never support a belligerent ally, if the US imposes severe tariffs on Europe, we need a collective and strong response.”
Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Luc Frieden also said that “the response to tariffs is to retaliate with [the same] action,” but insisted that this should not overshadow today’s discussions on defense.
However, some leaders took a more conciliatory tone.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that any tariff would be “bad for the US and bad for Europe” and emphasized the need for cooperation to resolve the situation.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said: “We need to negotiate with Trump,” before adding: “I will not start a war, I want to start negotiations.”
