Early start
The European Commission, the bloc’s executive, will brief member countries at breakfast time on Wednesday — just a few hours after the U.S. tariffs kicked in at one minute past midnight in Washington, or 5.01 a.m. Brussels time.
In the weeks since Trump returned to the White House and started announcing tariffs, the EU has been vocal about being ready to hit back against “unjustified tariffs.” On Monday, Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said the bloc is ready “to protect its businesses, workers and consumers.”
“We can’t rely on the U.S. anymore — it’s a new reality. So we have to be tough hitting back, that’s the only medicine,” one EU diplomat said.
Šefčovič visited Washington last month in an attempt to initiate a dialogue on averting a trade war, only to conclude that the Trump administration was not interested. “In the end, one hand cannot clap,” he said on Monday.
The United Kingdom, meanwhile, is keeping a low profile. “We’re not going to have a kneejerk reaction,” said an official from the Department for Business and Trade, pointing out that No. 10 is emphasizing the U.K. will “continue to take a cool-headed approach” to tariffs and to Trump’s antagonistic trade policy.
A bigger hit
EU diplomats, along with the steel industry representative, had expected the EU’s response package to pack more of a wallop than the suspended tariffs dating back to 2018.