Response to Steel and Aluminum Tariffs
"Just as the US Protects Its Own Interests, So Does the EU"
The European Union (EU) announced on the 12th that it will impose tariffs on US products worth 26 billion euros (approximately 41 trillion won) starting next month in response to the US's 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum.
On the same day, the EU Commission issued a statement saying it would pursue swift and proportionate measures.
According to Bloomberg News, the Commission plans to end the suspension of tariffs on US products on April 1 and present new countermeasures against US products by mid-April.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission, stated, "This corresponds to the economic scope of the US tariffs," adding, "Our countermeasures will be introduced in two phases. They will start on April 1 and be fully implemented by the 13th."
This follows the Trump administration's decision to impose a 25% tariff on all steel, aluminum, and derivative products imported into the US starting from that day. The Trump administration is also preparing to impose reciprocal tariffs targeting European automobiles and others. He has previously cited European value-added taxes as trade barriers.
Maros Sefcovic, EU Commissioner for Trade, said, "Just as the US looks after its own interests, so does the EU," adding, "The EU will protect European companies, workers, and consumers from unfair tariffs."
The EU clashed with the US over steel and aluminum tariffs during the first term of the Trump administration as well. In 2018, the EU retaliated against US tariffs by imposing counter-tariffs targeting politically sensitive companies such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles and Levi's jeans. Then, under the previous Joe Biden administration, a truce was reached through negotiations in 2021, and the enforcement of tariffs was suspended until the end of March this year. However, when the Trump administration imposed tariffs first, the EU responded in kind.
The EU Commission explained, "These recalibrated measures will be implemented fully for the first time," adding, "Tariffs will be imposed on products ranging from ships to bourbon whiskey and motorcycles."
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