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European leaders' reactions to US-EU tariff deal: Italy and Germany say potentially devastating trade conflict was avoided / Orban criticizes: "Trump ate von der Leyen for breakfast"

Monday, July 28


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The trade war between the US and the EU ended on Sunday, July 27, and several European leaders reacted. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the deal with the US “will bring stability” and “will bring predictability.” On the same note, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni welcomed the EU-US trade deal on Monday, saying that “escalating the trade conflict would have had unpredictable and potentially devastating consequences,” writes Euractiv.

On the other hand, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen stressed that now,"trade conditions will no longer be as good as before, and it is not our choice, but a balance must be found that stabilizes the situation and that both sides can live with," writes Al Jazeera.

And German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the agreement “has managed to avoid a trade conflict that would have severely damaged Germany’s export-oriented economy.” “This applies in particular to the automotive industry, where the current tariffs of 27.5% will be cut almost in half, to 15%.”

Not all European leaders see the decision as a good one

The announcement of the EU-US trade deal was not well received by some European leaders. French Prime Minister François Bayrou criticized the EU-US trade deal on Monday, calling it a"capitulation."

"It is a black day when an alliance of free peoples, united in their values and in the defense of their interests, resigns itself to submission," Bayrou declared on the X platform.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban also criticized the decision the two sides reached on Sunday. He criticized von der Leyen for failing to secure a favorable trade deal with the White House leader. “It was not a deal that President Donald Trump made with Ursula von der Leyen — it was Trump who ate von der Leyen for breakfast. That’s what happened,” Orban said.

Another voice in the Hungarian government, Péter Szijjártó – the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade – criticized the form of the agreement negotiated by Ursula von der Leyen. “New evidence has emerged that a change of leadership is urgently needed in Brussels. The von der Leyen Commission has caused serious damage to the European economy in recent years, and everything has been made worse by the fumbling in the customs area,” Szijjártó said.

The EU has agreed to purchase $750 billion worth of energy, invest $600 billion in the US above current levels, open member states’ markets to duty-free trade with the US, and buy “huge quantities” of military equipment. On the other hand, European exports will be subject to 15% tariffs in the US.

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