N. Peter Kramer’s Weekly Column
Negotiators of the European Parliament and the EU memberstates reached an agreement on the implementation of the tariff deal that was concluded last year by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump. It means that the US imposes an import duty of up to 15 percent on EU goods, and that, conversely, US industrial goods are allowed to enter the EU tariff-free. (Yes, you read it well).
The brave negotiators attached a number of conditions to the implementation of the tariff agreement. For example, if the US government decides to increase its tariffs on certain EU goods or puts economic pressure on the EU in other ways, the EU can suspend the implementation of the entire agreement.
It is clear that the agreement is disadvantageous for EU companies, but still better than an open trade war with the US. And, now there is an end date attached to it. On December 31, 2029, the implementation of the agreement will end. The negotiations about a possible extension will not have to be conducted with Trump, but with his successor. Trump’s term of office expires in January 2029.
The agreement reached by the negotiators still has to be formally approved by the EP, before the July 4 deadline that Trump has set. But whether a majority of MEPs will want to support this agreement is still a matter of conjecture.
And what the US President thinks of the attached conditions to the implementation of the tariff deal, we don’t know yet.
