U.S. President Donald Trump has set a July 4 deadline for the European Union to ratify a tariff agreement between the two trading partners, threatening that levies will "immediately jump to much higher levels" otherwise. In a Thursday Truth Social post following a call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Trump stated he had been "waiting patiently for the EU to fulfill their side of the Historic Trade Deal" agreed in Turnberry, Scotland.
Von der Leyen responded that the EU remains "fully committed" to implementing the pact, which would cap tariffs on many EU imports at 15% while removing levies for certain U.S. industrial products. "Good progress is being made towards tariff reduction by early July," von der Leyen said in a post on X.
This marks the second time in as many weeks Trump has escalated pressure on the EU to finalize the pact. On May 1, the president threatened to impose a 25% tariff on EU car and truck imports, claiming the bloc was not complying with the agreement. No official documentation of that levy has been published, and it remains unclear whether the new deadline supersedes the previous threat.
Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament's International Trade Committee, called Trump's car and truck tariff threat "unacceptable" in a LinkedIn post. However, he confirmed the EU was on track to finalize previously approved provisions of the agreement in June. The European Parliament approved key provisions in March, but the legislative body must complete negotiations with individual member governments before full implementation.
EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at a G7 summit in Paris this week. Lange confirmed Thursday that the European Parliament concluded its second round of negotiations with member governments this week, with a third round scheduled to begin May 19. "We remain more committed than ever to advance and defend Parliament's mandate so as to provide additional guarantees that will benefit citizens and companies in both the EU and the US," Lange stated.
Key Takeaways:
1. Trump has given the EU a July 4 deadline to ratify the trade agreement or face significantly higher tariffs.
2. The deal would cap tariffs on EU imports at 15% while eliminating levies on certain U.S. industrial products.
3. Trump previously threatened a 25% tariff on EU car and truck imports on May 1 over compliance concerns.
4. The European Parliament approved key provisions in March but negotiations with member governments continue.
5. EU officials state good progress is being made toward tariff reduction by early July and remain committed to the deal.
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