Trump slams EU, announces 25% import tariff

US President Donald Trump has announced plans to impose a 25% tariff on imports from the European Union, arguing that the bloc was established to undermine American interests.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Trump said the decision was finalised and would be formally announced soon.

“It’ll be 25 percent, generally speaking,” he told reporters. “That’ll apply to cars and other goods.”

Reiterating his longstanding claim that the US is treated unfairly in global trade, Trump accused the 27-member EU of blocking American automobiles and agricultural products while enjoying unrestricted access to the US market.

Currently, the EU levies a 10% tariff on US vehicle imports—four times higher than the 2.5% duty the US applies to European passenger cars. However, the US already imposes a 25% tariff on imported pickup trucks.

“Let’s be honest, the European Union was created to screw the United States,” Trump declared. “That’s its purpose, and they’ve done a great job. But now I’m president.”

Trump’s remarks prompted an immediate response from the European Commission, which defended the EU as a key economic partner to the US.

“The EU has been a boon for American businesses,” a spokesperson for the bloc’s executive arm said in a statement. “We will respond firmly and immediately to any unjustified trade barriers, including tariffs that target legal and non-discriminatory policies.”

European officials and commentators also pushed back against Trump’s claims.

“Trump hates the EU,” former French ambassador to the US Gérard Araud said on X. “He doesn’t know exactly what it is, but he hates it.”

Carl Bildt, Sweden’s former prime minister, criticised Trump’s perspective as historically inaccurate.

“The EU was actually created to prevent war in Europe,” Bildt posted on X.

Trump’s latest tariff threat adds to growing friction between Washington and Brussels, exacerbated by his administration’s “America First” approach to global affairs.

Beyond trade, European leaders have expressed concerns about Trump’s stance on NATO and his diplomatic outreach to Russian President Vladimir Putin. His repeated criticisms of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and promises to swiftly end the war in Ukraine have raised fears that he might broker a peace deal favouring Moscow, potentially allowing Russia to retain occupied Ukrainian territory.

On Monday, Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting, Friedrich Merz, warned that Europe must prepare for a future less dependent on the US.

“Americans, or at least this portion of Americans, care very little about the fate of Europe,” Merz said.

Following his Christian Democratic Union-Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) alliance’s victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections, Merz questioned NATO’s long-term viability, suggesting Europe might need to accelerate plans for an independent defence strategy.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attempted to ease fears about NATO’s future while calling on European allies to boost their military spending.

The only thing that puts NATO in jeopardy is the fact that we have NATO Allies who barely have militaries or whose militaries are not very capable because they’ve spent 40 years not spending any money on it,” Rubio said when asked about Merz’s comments.

“These are rich countries, especially in Western Europe,” Rubio added.

“They have plenty of money. They should be investing that in their national security, and they’re not.”