Remarks by Commissioner Šefčovič at the Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) press conference
European Commission
Speech
Apr 7, 2025
Brussels
"Check against delivery"
First, I want to thank the Polish Presidency for organising this critical debate. This is time well spent, especially in a moment that requires constant and strategic coordination.
I had the chance to update the Ministers on my recent engagements with my US counterparts and to discuss the way forward.
The current trade situation with the United States, our most significant partner, is in a tough spot.
A range of tariffs is hitting a significant portion of EU exports. In fact, €380 billion worth of EU exports to the US - some 70 percent of our total exports - are facing tariffs of 20 percent or 25 percent, or even higher when combined with existing Most Favoured Nation tariffs, like the 27.5% duty on passenger cars altogether.
To put it in perspective, that's over €80 billion in duties - an eleven-fold jump from the €7 billion the US currently collects.
From day one, my focus has been on initiating meaningful negotiations with the US Administration, building momentum at every step. And I appreciate the efforts of my counterparts, Secretary of Commerce Lutnick and USTR, Ambassador Greer, for maintaining an open and candid line of communication with us.
Where do we stand? Let me break it down into three key points.
First, both sides recognise that the EU-US trade relationship could benefit from a fresh look and a boost in strategic areas.
We face similar challenges, for instance, global overcapacities driven by non-market practices, the race for leadership in semiconductors, or securing critical minerals.
If we team up, we could build a truly transatlantic marketplace that benefits both sides.
In fact, as just mentioned by President von der Leyen, we have offered zero-for-zero tariffs for cars and industrial goods.
Second, let's be clear, however, engaging the US will take both time and effort.
Right now, we are in the early stages of discussions because the US views tariffs not as a tactical step but as a corrective measure. We are fully prepared to sit at the negotiation table whenever our American partners are ready.
Third, while the EU remains open to - and strongly prefers - negotiation, we will not wait endlessly. Until we see tangible progress, we will be working along three tracks:
- Defend our interests through countermeasures
- Diversify our trade through new agreements
- Deter harmful trade diversions.
On defending via countermeasures: In response to the steel and aluminium tariffs, we received valuable feedback from our Member States and 660 stakeholders. After carefully reviewing all of it, we have worked to table a robust list of countermeasures, while balancing the burden across the Member States. We will be sending the final list and tariff levels to them later today.
The vote is set for April 9, with the final list adopted on April 15. Duties on products will kick in on that day for the first set of measures, and on May 15 for the remaining ones.
On diversification: It is in our interest to strengthen our trade and investment ties with partners around the globe, like India, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines or in the Gulf region.
I want to hear from all our chief negotiators overseeing our active free trade agreement talks - in order to assess how best to accelerate these talks.
On deterring trade diversions: we are prepared to use every tool in our trade defence arsenal to protect the EU Single Market, EU producers, and EU consumers.
We will start by enhancing our import surveillance system to track real-time import flows, feeding our action with timely intelligence. You have heard from President von der Leyen that to that effect, we will set up a task force.
Finally, let's not forget that while the US has decided to step back from parts of the global trading system, that system is still crucial for the EU and the rest of the world.
The US makes up 13 percent of global goods trade. Our priority, along with the rest of the WTO, is to protect the remaining 87 percent and make sure that the global trade system prevails for the rest of us.
Turning to our discussion on China, I briefed the Ministers on my recent visit to Beijing, aimed at fostering cooperation to rebalance our trade and investment relationship with tangible results.
We covered:
- key longstanding issues, like overcapacity and subsidies,
- market access barriers for many European products,
- and the need to level the playing field for EU companies in China.
We also addressed Chinese investments in the EU EV supply chain to boost competitiveness and jobs in the EU, with a focus on technology transfer, R&D, and local sourcing of key components and the value generated here.
Lastly, we explored upgrading our customs cooperation, given that 91 percent of e-commerce entering the EU comes from China.
I believe this was an important first step in putting our engagement with China on the right track.
Let me conclude by thanking once again the Presidency and Michał for excellent sharing of what was today a very political, very strategic debate where I very much support all the very clear messages from all Member States for the unity of the European Union.
Thank you.
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