The EU Is Not Ready to Accept Higher U.S. Tariffs After the Supreme Court Ruling

European Union leaders said over the weekend that they are not prepared to accept higher U.S. tariffs following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that curtailed some of the most far-reaching duties imposed by the administration of Donald Trump.

“The Commission will always ensure the full protection of the European Union’s interests. EU companies and exporters must be guaranteed fair treatment, predictability, and legal certainty,” the European Commission said in a statement published on Saturday.

“An agreement is an agreement. As the United States’ largest trading partner, the EU expects Washington to honor the commitments enshrined in the Joint Statement—just as the EU honors its own,” the Commission added, recalling the understanding reached between Brussels and Washington last summer.

In July last year, Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a trade agreement that set tariffs on European goods at 15 percent. The document also provides for the European Union to purchase $750 billion worth of U.S. energy supplies.

This tariff level was significantly lower than the 30 percent Trump had previously threatened to impose on the EU and helped avert a trade war between the European Union and the United States.

On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down most of Trump’s expanded tariff measures, which had been a central pillar of his economic strategy. Throughout his presidency, the White House’s tariff policy roiled global markets, heightened economic uncertainty, and strained relations with Washington’s traditional allies, including the EU and Canada.

In a 6–3 decision, the Court ruled that the president’s expansive use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs on nearly all countries was impermissible. The 1970s-era law allows the president to “regulate” imports in cases of national emergencies that pose an “unusual and extraordinary” threat.

On Saturday, Trump said that after reviewing the court’s decision, he was raising the recently introduced global tariff to 15 percent.

The following day, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde stressed that countries need “clarity” about the future of their trade relations with the United States.