US' 30% tariff threat to EU fuels concern

The United States' threat to impose a 30 percent tariff on imports from the European Union starting Aug 1 has sparked widespread concern, with leaders and experts warning the move risks deepening global trade tensions and hurting economic stability.

In response, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU will defend its interests, while insisting that the bloc still wants to reach an accord — and on Sunday delayed retaliation over separate US tariffs on steel and aluminum as a sign of goodwill.

The EU has "always been very clear that we prefer a negotiated solution", she said. "This remains the case, and we will use the time that we have now till Aug 1."

Dick Schoof, prime minister of the Netherlands, said the tariff threat "is concerning and not the way forward".

"The European Commission can count on our full support. As the EU we must remain united and resolute in pursuing an outcome with the US that is mutually beneficial," he said in a post on X.

Meanwhile, EU trade ministers met in Brussels on Monday to discuss the bloc's response to the US move — and how strong a line to take with Washington.

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told daily Il Messaggero on Monday that the EU has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($24.56 billion) on US goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal.

The package could be followed by a second set if a deal with the US proves impossible, Tajani added. However, he said he was confident that progress could be made in negotiations.

Michael Schumann, president of Germany's Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade, told China Daily that the tariff threat shows how US trade diplomacy is now shaped by pressure and leverage.

"But Europe would be ill-advised to respond with alarm," Schumann said. "Negotiating under duress rarely leads to fair or lasting outcomes."

The US remains the EU's largest trading partner, he said, but under the Donald Trump administration, this partnership "has become a point of strategic exposure".

"Europe's continued fixation on a fading trans-Atlantic order risks delaying the strategic recalibration it urgently needs."

The continent's core challenge lies within, he said. Without internal cohesion and the will to act in its own interest, Europe will remain on the defensive, he added, noting that reducing vulnerabilities, reindustrializing key sectors, and designing a trade policy that diversifies risks and aligns with a multipolar era must now be top priorities.

'Cautionary examples'

Duan Demin, a professor of European studies at Peking University, said the US move is another example of its maximum-pressure tactics.

"By triggering a trade war that targets virtually the entire world, the US now wants to make the EU and Mexico serve as cautionary examples," he said.

"However, the US should know the world doesn't bend just because it says so. What it really hopes is that the EU and Mexico will yield under this pressure, allowing the US to claim a symbolic victory at home and shore up Republicans' base of supporters.

"For Europe, the possibility of compromise is real — and far from negligible. European leaders know that conceding some ground to the US might help prevent greater economic damage, not least because they still depend heavily on access to the vast US market."

Schumann also said that China has maintained a remarkably stable posture toward Europe and repeatedly signaled its interest in a constructive partnership, encouraging the EU to keep a good economic relationship with China.

Agencies contributed to this story.