I believe that there is still a possibility to continue negotiations with the US, said European Commissioner for Trade Maroš Šefčovič at a press conference after today's extraordinary meeting of European ministers in Brussels.
We have been discussing a trade agreement in principle with Washington for three months, we were close to signing it, but in some areas differences remained, he explained, after US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he would impose a 30 percent tariff on imports from the EU from August 1. Earlier today, Šefčovič said that trade with the US would become almost impossible with such tariffs.
We continue to seek an agreement, today we discussed the actions until August 1 and beyond, the European Commissioner pointed out. We must be ready for anything, including retaliatory measures, he added.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, who chaired today's EU Council meeting, expressed readiness to act in the event of any development on the issue of tariffs. If no agreement is reached, the EU may take retaliatory measures, there is a strong sense of unity among us, he said. EU countries find the imposition of a 30 percent tariff completely unacceptable and unjustified, the minister explained. According to him, the Danish Presidency of the EU Council remains ready to convene a new meeting if necessary.