US President Donald Trump has threatened the European Union with "much higher" tariffs by July 4 if the bloc does not reduce tariffs on the US to zero.
After a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Trump said he had agreed to give her time until "our country's 250th anniversary, or else their tariffs would immediately go up to much higher levels."
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Letter to the Reader — Why We're Asking for Your Support ContributeHowever, von der Leyen stated that the bloc is making "good progress towards reducing tariffs" ahead of the deadline set by Trump, the BBC reported.
Just hours after the threat, a US court ruled that Trump's recent 10% global tariffs were not justified under US trade law, which could pave the way for further legal challenges in the future.
A trade deal was reached between von der Leyen and Trump in July last year, but progress on its implementation hit a snag on Wednesday after talks between EU lawmakers and governments ended without an agreement.
"We remain fully committed, on both sides, to its implementation," von der Leyen wrote on the X platform on Thursday.
Trump had previously threatened 30% tariffs on European goods.
The agreement received conditional approval from the European Parliament in March, when a majority of MEPs supported legislation to implement it, but added several safeguards to ensure the US would honor its part of the deal.
Parliamentarians voted to accept zero tariffs on US goods only if European products made with steel and aluminium were exempt from Trump's 50% global tariff on these products.
Despite progress in Parliament, the agreement also requires approval from the 27 EU member states.