“Either they buy our oil and gas or it will be tariffs until the end”

“I have told the European Union that they must compensate for their tremendous deficit with the United States through large-scale purchasing of our oil and gas. Otherwise, it’s TARIFFs all the way!” Trump suddenly wrote this Friday, without anyone knowing why, on your social network Truth Social. Nobody in Brussels can say which European leader the president-elect spoke to before publishing his post.

The truth is that the first salvo of Trump 2.0 does not catch European leaders by surprise either. During his first term, The president-elect has already called the EU an “enemy” in trade mattersimposed tariffs on Spanish black olives and European steel and aluminum and unleashed an all-out trade war on account of cross-subsidies to aeronautical giants Boeing and Airbus.

During the campaign, Trump has threatened general customs duties of up to 20% on all imported products, including those from the EU, which could reach 100% in the case of cars. In an interview with Bloombergthe tycoon complained about a trade deficit that he places at $300 billion (a false figure, the real one is around $125 billion in 2023). “The EU treats us so badly”he states.

Unlike what happened in 2016, this time Brussels has taken the Republican candidate’s threats very seriously and has prepared a counterattack plan, which consists of hitting a series of iconic American products that are also manufactured in the states that vote most for Trump and Republicans. This blacklist is not yet known, because President Von der Leyen’s strategy is to try negotiation first.

“We are willing to discuss with President Trump how we can strengthen our already strong relationship, including discussing our common interests in the energy sector. As you know, the EU has already committed to progressively eliminating energy imports from Russia and diversifying sources of supply,” explained the Commission’s Trade Spokesperson, Olof Gillwhen asked about the president-elect’s penultimate salvo.

“We are not going to go into any detail of what that may mean in the future, given that the new administration has not even taken office. But the two things we want to make clear is that there is a high degree of complementarity between the EU and the US. in our commercial and economic relations And what’s more. The president has indicated her intention to establish a very constructive relationship with the new administration, also on energy issues,” the spokesperson stressed.

The Community Executive also wanted to refute Trump’s argument that the US registers a large trade deficit with the EU. Brussels’ counterargument is that it is two “deeply integrated economies, with balanced trade and investment together”. While it is true that the EU has a substantial trade surplus in goods with the US, Washington also registers a significant surplus in services with respect to the EU.

The heads of state and government of the 27 debated how to relate to the new Trump administration at the European Council held this Thursday in Brussels. The conclusion was to try to start a dialogue on a “positive agenda”, according to the president of the Commission.

“We are important trading partners and share deeply integrated markets and supply chains. We have a common interest in addressing global economic challenges, such as Chinese overcapacity. At the same time, we are preparing for various scenarios“Von der Leyen warned.

The German has already suggested in the past that the EU increase imports of liquefied natural gas from the US as a peace offer to appease Trump’s fury. A similar recommendation has also been made by the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagardewhich warns that an open trade war between Brussels and Washington would harm everyone.