Trump pressures EU to back tariffs on China amid trade tensions

US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 50% tariff on European Union imports starting June 1, escalating tensions over stalled trade negotiations. The announcement came amid growing frustration within Trump’s economic team over the EU’s approach to taxes, regulations, and policy toward China.

According to people familiar with the discussions, US officials have privately voiced irritation with the EU’s slow pace in trade talks, citing conflicting priorities among member states and what they perceive as reluctance to offer concrete solutions to American concerns. These include issues like value-added taxes, streaming service fees, automotive regulations, and antitrust fines against US firms, Caliber.Az reports per The Wall Street Journal. 

The Trump administration has also pushed for EU support in placing tariffs on Chinese industries, a step that EU leaders have so far resisted. Unlike the EU, the UK has agreed to move toward tariffs on Chinese steel as part of a separate trade agreement with the US.

“The EU has indicated a willingness to address nonmarket economies such as China’s,” said a person familiar with the bloc’s stance.

Tensions peaked on May 23 when Trump declared in the Oval Office that he is “not looking for a deal” with the EU. Despite the threat, an EU official noted that China has not been a major sticking point in the negotiations.

EU officials have been seeking a middle ground in their response to US demands—more assertive than China’s retaliation but less aggressive than the UK's concessions. Several EU ministers recently expressed dissatisfaction with the idea of any deal that maintains Trump’s 10 percent tariffs on EU goods.

The China-related talks are part of a broader US trategy to pressure partners into imposing reciprocal tariffs to counter Chinese state subsidies, particularly in strategic sectors like steel. However, European leaders remain hesitant, given China’s importance as an export market.

The EU’s approach to trade negotiations has clashed with Trump’s preference for swift deals. While Trump seeks quick announcements, the European Commission—tasked with EU trade policy—consults all 27 member states, slowing the process. This dynamic has been a central point of contention. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently raised concerns about the pace of talks during a finance ministers’ meeting in Canada.

The EU has rejected some of Washington’s demands outright, including changes to the bloc’s value-added tax and digital and health regulations, which officials say are nondiscriminatory and will remain in place.

“It’s difficult to know from Trump’s post whether the president actually intends to follow through on his tariff threat,” an EU diplomat said on May 24. “You can’t base policy off a Truth Social post.”

By Sabina Mammadli