EU promises swift response to US tariffs on bloc's aluminium and steel

The European Union has vowed to take “firm and proportionate measures” in response to US-imposed tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

This comes just hours after US president Donald Trump announced a 25% import tax on all steel and aluminium entering the US.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the tariffs unjustified, and vowed a prompt response. 

Von der Leyen’s home country of Germany is possibly one of the biggest victims of such tariffs, as the US is a major importer of its steel and aluminium output. On Tuesday, she was also scheduled to meet US vice president, JD Vance.

During the first Trump presidency, the EU had responded to similar tariffs with their own, taxing €2.8 billion worth of US goods such as jeans, Harley Davidson motorcycles, and bourbon.

On Tuesday morning, MEPs discussed the tariffs, as many of them condemned the crushing economic punch and Trump. He was widely described as a bully, with MEPs saying that the bloc should not buckle and bend to his will. 

The EU is not the first target of Trump’s tariffs during his second term. During the past few weeks, he announced tariffs against Canada and Mexico.

During an informal summit of EU leaders in anticipation of the tariffs, Prime Minister Robert Abela called for the retention of a strong relationship between the EU and the US in light of Donald Trump’s second term.