EU lawmakers agree stance on trade pact

Lawmakers in the European Parliament on Tuesday forged a consensus on the European Union-United States trade deal, which was struck in July 2025 by US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Approval has been contentious in recent weeks amid Trump's threats to assert control over the Arctic island of Greenland, and lawmakers have been debating whether to attach new strings to the deal.

Parliament suspended the approval process in January after Trump declared on social media that he would levy a 10-percent tariff from February on eight European countries for participating in a military mission in the Arctic region.

Talks resumed a few weeks later, with lawmakers from the parliament's political groups refining the details of the legislation.

Their compromise text is slated for a formal vote on Feb 24, and in a plenary session as early as March, reported Euronews.

It contains a "sunset clause", under which EU tariff reliefs expire at the end of March 2028 unless expressly renewed, and a "suspension clause", which would be triggered if the US breaches the agreement's provisions.

Greenland sovereignty

The Tuesday meeting ended in a stalemate over the scrapping of duties on US industrial products and lobster, reported Politico. The impasse was lifted after top trade lawmakers hammered out safeguards to mitigate the risk of renewed hostility from the US administration, following threats to annex Greenland.

"After the Greenland issue, we introduced a clear criterion for the territorial sovereignty of the European Union, to the set of criteria for a possible suspension," said lawmaker Bernd Lange, a German Social Democrat who chairs the parliament's trade committee.

The suspension that would nullify the agreement if Trump again threatens Europe's territorial integrity had already been agreed upon before Tuesday's meeting.

"Once the agreement is in place, the EU will also have a new tool to respond if we are once again subjected to tariff blackmail," said Karin Karlsbro, a lawmaker with the liberal Renew Europe group.

Political groups within the parliament also backed a provision requiring the European Commission to review the deal six months after it takes effect if US tariffs on EU goods containing steel have not been reduced to a 15 percent baseline from the current 50 percent.

"If the United States does not reduce the tariffs for these products — more than 400 products — in six months, we will reestablish the tariffs for steel and steel-relevant products inside the EU, automatically," said Lange.

After the March plenary, EU institutions will begin negotiations, with parliament's changes foreshadowing tough talks with EU capitals, said Politico.

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