BRUSSELS — The EU will merge two packages of retaliation measures against U.S. tariffs into a single one that will be ready to use if trade negotiations with the Trump administration go sour, a European Commission spokesperson said Wednesday.
“To make our countermeasures clearer, simpler, and stronger, we will merge lists 1 & 2 into a single list,” the bloc’s spokesperson for trade Olof Gill told journalists. The first list is currently paused until Aug. 6 and the second awaits a vote by the EU’s 27 member countries.
The combined list would target €93 billion of U.S. imports into the EU including bourbon, airplanes and soybeans. The first dates back to Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs from March, with the second one only recently finalized. Gill said the combined list would enter into force on Aug. 7, though the Commission can suspend the measures for longer.
The move comes as negotiations have faltered in recent weeks after President Donald Trump threatened to hit the EU with 30 percent tariffs if the two sides don’t reach a deal by Aug. 1.
“Our priority is negotiations, we continue in parallel to prepare for all outcomes,” Gill said. He added that Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič was due to speak with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick later on Wednesday.
Trump announced a deal with Japan overnight that set a 15 percent tariff across the board, including for cars. The EU is also pushing for assurances on industrial products it ships to the U.S.
