At the European Parliament’s INTA Committee, the European Commissioner for Trade, Maroš Šefčovič, insisted on the need to respect the EU’s commitment on trade with the United States, “under the condition, of course, that we get more clarity from the U.S.”.
Despite an increasingly unpredictable situation, the Commissioner felt that the process should move forward with the implementation of the EU-US Joint Declaration that was negotiated in the summer of 2025.
This includes the approval of two regulations governing the reduction or elimination of European tariffs on a number of American products. A vote should have taken place the same day in the INTA Committee, but was postponed the day before due to the latest developments across the Atlantic (see EUROPE 13814/4).
“I have been in constant touch with my counterparts, and they both reassured me they stand by the deal with the EU”, explained the Commissioner. “They will respect the commitment if we respect it too”, he added.
According to Šefčovič, the European Parliament must keep the March plenary session in its sights for voting on its final position on these regulations. The EU Council already validated its position on 24 November (see EUROPE 13762/15).
This statement raised eyebrows among several MEPs, who felt that the situation had become so chaotic that resuming negotiations at the European Parliament was not a straightforward matter without clear guarantees.
On Friday 20 February, the US Supreme Court rejected the American customs tariffs implemented by the US administration, thereby calling into question the very nature of the EU-US agreement signed in the summer, which imposed a 15% tariff on European exports to the United States.
In response to this ruling, US President Donald Trump invoked a new legal basis to impose a 10% tariff, which he then increased to 15% on all global imports, with the exception of certain sectors (aerospace, pharmaceuticals and energy).
As Kathleen Van Brempt (S&D, Belgian) noted, if this rate is now applied to all the United States’ trading partners, the EU will lose its tariff advantage. She called on the European Commission to “return to the negotiating table”.
This unstable situation requires “more than rhetorical commitments from the United States”, said Anna Cavazzini (Greens/EFA, German).
She stressed the need to find a solution to the US surtax on European steel and aluminium products (which is not called into question by the Court’s ruling) (see EUROPE 13813/3).
On this point, Maroš Šefčovič gave assurances that his American counterparts were taking the EU’s concerns seriously. “I hope that a solution can be found quickly”, he said.
Mercosur. A potential provisional application of the trade agreement with the Mercosur countries was also the subject of several questions from MEPs.
Mr Šefčovič explained that, from a legal point of view, the EU was in a position to provisionally apply the Mercosur agreement from the point of first ratification with Argentina, which should take place next week. However, he pointed out that a lengthy process of political and technical assessments still needed to be carried out with the Mercosur countries before this provisional application could be validated. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)