Washington: The European Union’s trade manager said on Wednesday that the block will act “firmly and quickly” to protect his interests if the United States imposes prices on EU property, firmly rejecting the president’s assertion Donald Trump that US trade relations with the EU are unfair.
“This is the very definition of a win-win partnership, and there is nothing unfair,” added Maros Sefcovic, while Europe is preparing for increased tariff tensions with the United States.
Speaking on Wednesday at the American Enterprise Institute, Sefcovic said that the EU saw “no justification for sudden and unilateral tariff increases” by the United States, adding that companies were based on economic stability and the predictability on both sides.
If the United States imposed prices on EU products, this would create “unnecessary obstacles” for exports, agricultural businesses and workers on both sides of the Atlantic, said Sefcovic, which is European Commissioner for the commercial and economic security.
“To protect European interests, we will have no choice but to respond firmly and quickly,” he said before interviews with his American counterparts.
But he pointed out that the block will do its best to avoid such a result.
Sefcovic’s journey comes after Trump threatened to bring back “reciprocal prices” to the allies and adversaries, aiming for the EU to be “absolutely brutal” in trade relations with the United States.