Brussels [Belgium], April 7 (ANI): European Union President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday stated that the EU has extended an offer to the United States to remove tariffs on all industrial goods as part of ongoing trade negotiations, proposing a “zero-for-zero” tariff deal.
In a post on X, she said, “Europe is ready to negotiate with the US. We have offered zero-for-zero tariffs for industrial goods. Because we’re always ready for a good deal. But we’re also prepared to respond with countermeasures. And protect ourselves against indirect effects through trade diversion.”
The European Commission’s offer comes amid rising trade tensions following US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 20 per cent across-the-board tariff on EU imports, set to take effect on April 9. Additionally, steel, aluminum, and automobiles face a separate 25 per cent tariff. In total, over €380 billion worth of EU goods will be impacted, according to Euro News.
Some sectors, including pharmaceuticals, copper, lumber, semiconductors, and energy, will be exempted from the new tariff rates.
Von der Leyen stressed that the EU had made similar offers in the past, particularly targeting the automotive sector, but claimed there was “no adequate reaction” from Washington. She emphasized that the Commission had now expanded the proposal to cover all industrial goods.
“We prefer to have a negotiated solution,” von der Leyen said, warning that the EU is prepared to deploy “all instruments” to protect its interests if talks fail. This includes invoking the anti-coercion instrument adopted in 2023, which has yet to be used.
She criticized the sweeping tariffs as a “major turning point for the United States” with “immense costs” for American consumers and a “massive” impact on global trade.
The US has defended the tariffs as “reciprocal,” but Brussels dismissed that reasoning as “neither credible nor justified.”
European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic added that while the EU remains open to negotiations, it has seen little enthusiasm from Washington for balanced discussions. The EU is expected to introduce countermeasures on April 15 if no progress is made.
The broader economic implications are significant. Asian economies have been hit even harder than Europe, with tariffs ranging from 24 per cent for Malaysia to as high as 54 per cent for China, sparking fears of trade diversion toward the EU market.
To monitor these shifts, von der Leyen announced the creation of an “Import Surveillance Task Force” to detect sudden spikes in imports that could disrupt the European market.
“We look at what are the historical imports that we have and had and (whether) there is any specific surge all of a sudden of a certain product or in a certain sector that we have to act on,” she said, as reported by Euro News. (ANI)
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