International-News

EU speeds up countermeasures to US tariffs, with no agreement in place since 7 August

The European Commission unifies proposals and aims for a quick decision. Meanwhile, Trump announces a new mega trade deal with Japan

The European Commission has decided to unify the two lists of possible countermeasures to the unilateral tariffs imposed by the United States into a single proposal. The document will be submitted to Member States and, if approved, will not enter into force before 7 August.

‘Our goal remains a negotiated solution with Washington,’ said Trade Spokesman Olof Gill. A meeting between European Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick is scheduled for this afternoon. The unification should make the EU’s intervention ‘clearer, simpler and more effective’.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump has announced on Truth that he has signed the ‘biggest trade deal ever’ with Japan: reciprocal tariffs set at 15% and Japanese investments of $550 billion on American soil. According to Trump, the plan will bring hundreds of thousands of new jobs.

In Tokyo, caution prevails. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has stated that he will carefully evaluate the agreement. Negotiator Ryosei Akazawa spoke of “mission accomplished”, emphasising that the agreement provides for a reduction in US tariffs on Japanese cars from 25% to 15%, but without significant changes to Japanese tariffs, especially in the agricultural sector.

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