Brussels: The European Commission on Sunday called on Washington to adhere to the terms of the trade agreement it concluded last year with the European Union, while President Donald Trump announced new increases in global customs duties, a day after an adverse Supreme Court ruling.“An agreement is an agreement,” the committee said in a statement.He added: “As the largest trading partner of the United States, the European Union expects the United States to respect its commitments set out in the Joint Statement – just as the European Union adheres to its commitments.”“The European Commission requests full clarification on the steps the United States intends to take following the recent Supreme Court ruling on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).”Trump temporarily raised global tariffs on imports to the United States to 15 percent on Saturday.The move sparked a new jolt of uncertainty just a day after the Supreme Court ruled that much of his international campaign was illegal.Last year, the European Union and the United States reached an agreement setting US customs duties at a maximum of 15 percent on most European goods.“EU products should continue to benefit from the most competitive treatment, with tariffs not increased beyond the clear and comprehensive ceiling previously agreed,” the Commission said.
“When applied unpredictably, tariffs are inherently destructive, undermining confidence and stability in global markets and creating greater uncertainty across international supply chains,” he warned.– Asking for clarification –The European Commission said it remains in “close and ongoing contact” with the Trump administration and that EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic spoke with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Saturday.Greer told CBS on Sunday that Washington’s agreements with the European Union, China and other partners remain in effect despite the Supreme Court’s ruling.“So we’re having active conversations with them. We want them to understand that these deals are going to be good deals,” he told “Face the Nation.”He added: “We expect to stand by them. We expect our partners to stand by them.” But European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde told the same program that she was unsure of the consequences of the US court’s decision.“I hope the matter will be clarified,” she added.The European Parliament’s trade committee was scheduled to approve the EU-US deal on Tuesday, but the Supreme Court ruling casts doubt on what is happening now.– ‘Tariff chaos’ in the US –Committee Chairman Bernd Lange said that he would call during a meeting of political groups in Parliament on Monday to postpone “legislative work until we obtain an appropriate legal assessment and clear commitments from the American side.”“Tariff chaos by the US administration. No one can understand it anymore – only open questions and growing uncertainty for the EU and other US trading partners,” Lange wrote.He added: “There is a need for clarity and legal certainty before any further steps are taken.”Analysts at ING Bank wrote on Sunday that even if Trump’s new tariffs are legally challenged, they may be just “smoke and mirrors” to buy time for another tariff option. This could be tariffs based on unfair trade practices or violations of trade agreements, for example, they wrote.ING added: “It remains unclear now whether the (European) Parliament will push for a full renegotiation of the agreement.”Even if it did, the United States could still use other tariffs to “pressure the EU to return to the negotiating table.”The Supreme Court ruling was a stunning rebuke of Trump from a judiciary that has largely sided with him since his return to office. It was a major political setback in bringing down Trump’s signature economic policy that had disrupted the global trading system.Several countries said they were studying the Supreme Court ruling and Trump’s subsequent tariff announcements.
