EU Ready for Trump's Threats

The European Union is prepared for a potential increase in tariffs by the new U.S. administration. This statement was made by Tobias Lindner, coordinator for transatlantic relations in the German government. "If Donald Trump imposes higher tariffs against the European Union, the EU is ready for that," Lindner said in an interview with AFP.

Trump has threatened EU partners with "massive tariffs" if they do not reduce the U.S. trade deficit by buying oil and gas from America. According to Tobias Lindner, this shows that climate protection and energy transition policies are ultimately also hard economic and trade policies.

In negotiations with American partners, it is important to demonstrate which sectors in the U.S. create additional value by German companies, particularly in the automotive sector, and to emphasize that many jobs depend on this, the German politician highlighted. "Companies are neither German nor American; they are both," he stated.