Trump Presides Over First Cabinet Meeting
"Europe Exists to Take Advantage of the U.S.... Tariff Announcement Coming Soon"
U.S. Will Not Participate in Security Guarantees for Ukraine
On the 26th (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump strongly criticized the European Union (EU) as an organization "designed to take advantage of the United States" and announced that a 25% tariff would soon be imposed on the EU. The timing for imposing tariffs on Mexico and Canada, which are currently deferred, was postponed again by one month to April 2. If the U.S. imposes tariffs on European products as planned, a trade war between the U.S. and the EU is expected to intensify.
At the first cabinet meeting held that day, when asked by reporters about the tariff rate to be imposed on the EU, President Trump said, "We will announce it very soon," adding, "Generally, a 25% tariff will be imposed on all products, including automobiles."
Currently, the U.S. imposes a 2.5% tariff on EU passenger cars, while the EU applies a 10% tariff on U.S.-made passenger cars. Regarding the value-added tax, which President Trump claims is "equivalent to a tariff," Europe’s rate reaches at least 17.5%.
President Trump criticized trade policies favorable to Europe, citing the U.S. trade deficit with the EU. He stated, "Europe does not accept American cars and agricultural products, and the trade deficit has reached $300 billion," and asserted, "Frankly, the European Union was created to screw the United States." In response to President Trump’s tariff declaration against the EU, the European Commission expressed its stance to respond firmly and immediately to unfair trade barriers.
Foreign media expressed concerns that President Trump’s "EU tariff attack" could trigger a transatlantic trade war. The Western alliance, already strained by the U.S.’s pro-Russia stance, could weaken further. The UK’s Financial Times (FT) warned, "Trump’s remarks could provoke a transatlantic trade war, which may have a significant impact on the U.S. and European economies," adding, "It could cause even greater damage to the already weakened diplomatic relations among Western allies."
President Trump also announced that the tariffs on products from Mexico and Canada, originally scheduled to take effect on the 4th of next month, would be postponed to April 2. This means the enforcement date was delayed by one month. April 2 is the day the Department of Commerce must submit a comprehensive recommendation on reciprocal tariffs. However, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing White House officials, reported that "Trump has not yet decided whether to extend the North American tariffs further." Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross made it clear that Mexico and Canada’s efforts to delay tariff imposition must be premised on their efforts to curb fentanyl trafficking and illegal immigration.
President Trump also reaffirmed his position that the U.S. will not participate in Ukraine’s security guarantees, a key element in negotiations to end the Ukraine war. He said, "I will not provide (security guarantees) to Ukraine," adding, "Europe should do it." He further stated that he believes President Putin should make concessions in negotiations to end the war that Putin started in Ukraine.
Regarding Ukraine’s accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), he dismissed the possibility, saying, "Forget about it," and added, "I probably think that is the reason everything started." This aligns with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s view that Ukraine’s attempt to join NATO provoked Russia’s invasion.
Also attending the cabinet meeting was Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who is a civilian rather than a formal government official. President Trump praised Musk and gave him the opportunity to speak. Musk said, "We need to move quickly to reduce the federal deficit by trillions of dollars," adding, "If we don’t cut spending, the U.S. will go bankrupt." He also stated that the goal is to reduce the deficit by $1 trillion by 2026. The New York Times (NYT) reported that this amount is less than half of what was promised in the 2024 presidential election campaign.The New York Times (NYT) reported.
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