'Screw' off: EU countries & business hit back at Trump's tariff threat

Frontline politicians and business people across Europe have hit back at U.S. President Donald Trump's 25 percent tariff threat against EU countries, with many saying reciprocal barriers will have to be erected against the United States.

It follows Trump's latest provocation when he claimed the EU was created to "screw" the United States. 

French Finance Minister Eric Lombard said the EU would "do the same" if the U.S. follows through with his tariff threat.

"It is clear that if the Americans maintain the tariff hikes, as President Trump announced, the EU will do the same," Lombard said on the sidelines of the G20 finance ministers meeting in Cape Town.

"Even if it is not in the general interest, we too must protect our interests and the interests of the countries of the union." 

Diplomats from the G7 countries spoke to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday, telling him that "tariff wars lead to inflation, lower growth and are not a solution", Lombard said.

"Minister Bessent told us that negotiations would start on April 2," Lombard said, adding the EU would "represent the European countries with the aim of reaching a fair agreement".

He added: "Europe is fully united." 

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez agreed, saying that the bloc's response would be "proportionate".

"We are going to defend our interests against those who want to attack European economies with tariffs that are completely unjustified and that also covertly threaten our economic sovereignty," the Socialist premier said during a speech in the northern Spanish town of Zamudio.

"We in the European Union are going to adopt measures in response that are proportionate to that challenge," he added.

Trump's proposed new tariffs would include car imports, adding that the EU has "really taken advantage of us."

Boon

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also rejected Trump's allegation. 

The former European Council chief said: "The EU wasn't formed to screw anyone. Quite the opposite. It was formed to maintain peace, to build respect among our nations, to create free and fair trade, and to strengthen our transatlantic friendship. As simple as that."

The European Commission, the 27-nation bloc's executive arm, has warned it would respond "firmly and immediately" should Trump impose new tariffs.

"The European Union is the world's largest free market. And it has been a boon for the United States," said a European Commission source. "We should work together to preserve these opportunities for our people and businesses. Not against each other."

They argued the EU's single market "has facilitated trade, reduced costs for US exporters, and harmonized standards and regulations across 27 countries".

'Dark hour'

Italy's business lobby struck a similar tone on Wednesday.

"The threat is not only of an impact on trade dynamics. The truth is far more dramatic ... What is coming from the American leadership is an attack on European companies and jobs," Confindustria president Emanuele Orsini said in a statement.

Describing the situation as "a dark hour," Orsini said Trump's trade policies aimed to "deindustrialize" the European continent and urged Brussels to consider "extraordinary measures for an extraordinary time."

Industry Minister Adolfo Urso, a member of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, took a more conciliatory tone, saying a trade war had to be avoided and urging unity among the western allies.

"It is not a time to divide the West, it is a time to unite the West, because Western challenges are common," he said on Thursday after a summit of ministers on the European steel sector in Paris.

"Italy is obviously worried about a possible escalation in the event of a trade war, because we are a major exporting country," he added.

Trump meets UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House on Thursday for their first in-person talks since the Republican leader upended U.S. policy on global trade, Ukraine and the Middle East.