Customs duties: Macron “hopes to have convinced” Trump not to engage in trade war against the EU

“I hope I have convinced it”: the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron, visiting Washington (United States) on Monday, argued the cause of the European Union in the face of the tide of new customs rights promised by Donald Trump.

Since the start of his second term, the American president regularly announces new taxes on products entering the United States, sometimes already entered into force (with China), sometimes repulsed on a later date for Canadians, Mexicans or specific products such as steel, aluminum, later drugs, automobile …

“Our will is that there is just competition”

He notably accuses the countries of the European Union-which export more to the United States than the reverse-of behaving in a “unfair” manner with his country. Donald Trump criticizes in particular the level of the value added tax (VAT), paid by consumers in European countries, which he has assimilated to an additional customs right on American products.

The discussions will continue “between our ministers, our teams, to clarify the subjects which must be” on the commercial level, he added. “I hope to have convinced him,” said the French president then in an interview with the American channel Fox News. “VAT (20 % in France) is not a customs right, ”he said in particular. He also said he told his counterpart that the latter could not “wage a trade war against China and Europe at the same time”.

“It’s really not time to increase customs duties,” he continued. For what ? Because the urgency is to increase our defense and security expenses. How do you want us to do it if we are at the trade war? »»

Meeting between finance ministers

A large part of the meeting between Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron focused on the war in Ukraine, three years to the day after the start of the Russian invasion. A bilateral interview also took place this Monday in Washington on Monday at the level of the finance ministers, the American Scott Bessent and the French Eric Lombard. Scott Bessent, on this occasion, “underlined the importance of continuing the long transatlantic relationship between France and the United States”, according to a statement from the American administration.

The threat of customs duties is even more tangible for direct neighbors in the United States: Canada and Mexico. During a press conference with Emmanuel Macron, President Donald Trump said that the customs duties he wishes to impose on them would be applied “according to the scheduled calendar”.

Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum hoped for her part, at a press conference in Mexico City, reaching an agreement before the end of the week to avoid seeing Mexican products surcharged from March 4. Donald Trump announced the establishment of customs duties of 25 % on all Canadian and Mexican products before turning around in early February, a few hours before their entry into force, granting a 30-day stay to the two countries.

“We must be able to deal with the unpredictability of President Trump,” the Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said. “We must be aware that the threat of customs duties is real, and could last a moment,” she added, saying that he had “positive feedback from many American officials on what we have done” to meet the American requirement to better secure their common border.