Member states of the European Union on Wednesday voted to approve imposing a 25 percent tariff on U.S.-exported products to the EU, in retaliation for the Trump administration's announcement on March 12 to levy tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from the EU.
In a statement, the European Commission condemned the U.S. tariffs as "unjustified and damaging, causing economic harm to both sides, as well as to the global economy."
According to media outlets Euractiv and Politico, 26 of the bloc's 27 member states voted in favor during Wednesday's session, signaling overwhelming support for fighting back against Trump's tariff measures.
"Nobody in Slovakia is happy with this step of American government. Maybe 80 percent of the Slovak industry is the automobile industry. So, it will be no good impact to our economy. It will slow down improvement, [its] not good for the whole connection," said Frantisek Vrab, Executive Director at Training and Consulting, an innovative Slovak company revolutionizing biological extraction.
The tariffs will be introduced in three stages. The first set, on goods such as cranberries and orange juice, will take effect on April 15. A second round, covering items such as steel, meat, white chocolate, and polyethylene, will follow on May 16. The final phase, targeting almonds and soybeans, is scheduled for Dec 1.
The list covers a wide range of agricultural and industrial products, including soybeans—a major U.S. agricultural export to Europe—along with poultry, tobacco, iron, motorcycles, dental floss, and both steel and aluminum. These goods amounted to approximately 22 billion euros (24.36 billion U.S. dollars) last year, much of which originated from Republican states that played a key role in re-electing President Donald Trump.
Notably absent from the list is American bourbon whiskey, which was removed after Trump threatened to impose 200 percent tariffs on EU wine and liquor.
These steps mark the EU's initial response to the broader transatlantic trade dispute. In addition to metals, the Trump administration previously announced a 25 percent tariff on EU cars and a so-called "reciprocal" tariff of 20 percent on nearly all other EU imports.
The European Commission also repeated its preference "to find negotiated outcomes with the U.S., which would be balanced and mutually beneficial."
EU countries back retaliatory measures to counter U.S. tariffs
