EU lawmakers on Monday postponed approval of the bloc’s trade deal with the US amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariff policy.
The delay followed Trump’s announcement of a blanket 15% duty after a US Supreme Court ruling last week struck down many of his previous worldwide tariffs. The European Parliament’s trade committee had planned a Tuesday vote to lift import duties on US industrial goods—a central element of the EU‑US agreement—but the vote was put off.
European Commission spokesman Olof Gill said Brussels would not take further steps until Washington provided clarity. “We look forward to our American counterparts explaining to us precisely what is happening,” he told reporters in Brussels.
What is the EU‑US trade deal?
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reached a legally binding agreement with Trump in July that capped tariffs on most European imports to the US at 15% and saw Brussels agree to remove many EU import duties on US goods. That deal still requires approval by the European Parliament and EU governments.
The newly announced 15% US tariffs take effect on Tuesday and can remain for 150 days unless extended by Congress. Bernd Lange, chairman of the European Parliament’s trade committee, warned the new duties could mean higher levies on some products despite the 15% cap agreed in the deal. “We want to have clarity from the United States that they are respecting the deal,” he said. EU lawmakers are expected to reconvene on March 4 to assess whether Washington has provided sufficient clarification.
This is not the first delay: the approval process was halted last month when Trump threatened extra tariffs on European allies over opposition to his plans regarding Greenland.
Germany’s response
German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said Berlin was coordinating with European partners to determine what US tariff policy to expect. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz plans to travel to Washington this week to present “a coordinated European position” on the tariffs.
Merz urged a swift end to uncertainty for the sake of transatlantic relations and industry on both sides of the Atlantic. He also said the EU’s so‑called “trade bazooka” — a tool allowing restrictions on access to the bloc’s market — could be used as a last resort in a trade dispute with the US. “I am confident that we will find a way to resolve these trade disputes without resorting to this instrument,” Merz said. “But if it is necessary, then it is necessary, and I will be the last person to say ‘no.’”
Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah