US tariffs on EU countries will rise “to much higher levels“ if they fail to meet their obligations under the trade deal reached with the US last summer by July 4, US President Donald Trump wrote on the social media platform TruthSocial.
“A promise was made that the EU would fulfill its part of the deal and, as agreed, reduce tariffs to ZERO! I agreed to give them until our 250th anniversary (US Independence Day, celebrated on July 4), otherwise, unfortunately, tariffs will immediately increase to much higher levels“, wrote Republican.
Trump also wrote that he had a “great conversation“ with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. He said the two sides agreed that Iran should never acquire nuclear weapons and that a regime that “kills its own people“ cannot control such weapons.
EU countries failed to approve a trade agreement with the United States at a meeting of representatives of the European Parliament and member states held on the evening of May 6, Bloomberg reported. Amendments to the agreements reached in July 2025 were discussed, but according to a Cypriot representative, no final decisions have been made.
The “Turnberry“ trade agreement between the EU and the United States was signed in July 2025 in Turnberry, Scotland, and aims to eliminate the trade imbalance, with which the EU exports significantly more to the United States than it imports.
Under the agreement, the EU committed to eliminating tariffs on US industrial goods and extending preferences for US agricultural and marine products. The United States committed to limiting tariffs on EU goods to no more than 15% and to apply only the basic tariff on certain items.
In addition, the trade agreement provides for a reduction in tariffs on European car exports from 25% to 15%.
Trump had previously threatened to impose 30% tariffs on the EU, but this rate was reduced during the negotiations. The EU promised to eliminate tariffs on US goods.
On May 1, Trump announced his intention to increase tariffs on EU cars and trucks from 15% to 25%, citing Europe's failure to meet its obligations under the agreement. The move, according to Reuters, drew sharp criticism from European politicians and trade groups, with one European economist calling on Brussels and the German government to "finally show some strength" and impose retaliatory tariffs.
"There is neither a legal nor an economic basis for these tariffs. This is truly a political move against Germany," said Bernd Lange, a member of the European Parliament, commenting on the Republican's threats.
The US Supreme Court has overturned most of the tariffs imposed by Trump on various countries in February this year. Specifically, it has lifted "reciprocal" tariffs imposed on most countries; tariffs on goods from China, Canada and Mexico, justified by the need to combat the smuggling of the synthetic opioid fentanyl into the United States; and "secondary" tariffs against India, imposed in response to purchases of Russian oil.
Trump complained that the removal of tariffs will force the US to refund $159 billion to multiple companies.