Approve €20B+ retaliation....

EU takes revenge on Trump’s tariffs as countries approve €20B+ retaliation

Brussels is now set to strike back against U.S. president’s steel and aluminum measures.

By Koen Verhelst and Camille Gijs

The EU can apply retaliatory tariffs on nearly €21 billion of U.S. products like soybeans, motorcycles and orange juice after the bloc’s 27 countries assented to the measures on Wednesday, the European Commission announced.

“The EU considers U.S. tariffs unjustified and damaging, causing economic harm to both sides, as well as the global economy. The EU has stated its clear preference to find negotiated outcomes with the U.S., which would be balanced and mutually beneficial,” the EU executive said in a statement.

Hitting back against U.S. President Donald Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs, the European Union’s countermeasures will apply in three rounds. Measures covering €3.9 billion in trade will go into force next week, with a further €13.5 billion from mid-May and a final round of €3.5 billion following in December.

Only Hungary opposed the package, according to four EU diplomats with direct knowledge of the vote, while all other 26 countries voted in favor.

“Escalation is not the answer. Such measures would cause further damage to European economy and citizens by raising prices. The only way forward is negotiations, not retaliation,” Hungary's Foreign and Trade Minister Péter Szijjártó said in a post on X. 

Fourteen EU countries would have needed to vote against the retaliation, which had been seen as unlikely considering the shows of unity in recent weeks.

The retaliation does not yet respond to Trump’s imposition of 20 percent “reciprocal” tariffs on all EU exports, which came into force on Wednesday, and his latest 25 percent tariff on cars. Trump has also said tariffs on pharmaceuticals are coming soon.

The European Commission is considering putting forward its countermeasures on those tariffs as early as next week. “It will for sure be soon. I expect it could be as early as next week,” trade spokesperson Olof Gill said Tuesday.

Trump demands that the EU reduce its trade surplus with the U.S., for instance by buying unrealistic amounts of gas or lowering safety standards on cars.

While Europe indeed sells more goods to Americans, the U.S. in turn enjoys a surplus when it comes to services. Overall, the €1.3 trillion trade relationship is off by only some €50 billion. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen this week revived the idea of scrapping all industrial tariffs — in a “zero-for-zero” deal — on a mutual basis.