'US has escalated situation on several levels now, and we cannot rule out that they will drag us into a trade war,' says trade minister
Sweden's Foreign Trade Minister Benjamin Dousa on Monday criticized the US decision to impose new tariffs on the EU, warning it could trigger a full-blown trade war.
Speaking ahead of an emergency meeting of EU trade ministers in Brussels, Dousa described Washington's move to introduce a 30% tariff on EU goods starting Aug. 1 as “unfortunate, unacceptable and surprising.”
“The US has escalated the situation on several levels now, and we cannot rule out that they will drag us into a trade war,” Dousa told Swedish broadcaster SVT.
The EU had hoped to resolve tensions through negotiations, according to Dousa, who said talks with the US were close to reaching a preliminary agreement.
He said: “30% is obviously not something that we from Europe can accept. We have always tried to get a negotiated solution that we can all live with, but then the White House still chooses this path and I think that is unfortunate.”
“There are new messages from the White House every hour and every other day, so it's hard to speculate on exactly what they're thinking. But we have to prepare for the worst.”
Dousa emphasized that the EU has not introduced any retaliatory measures so far and has acted “according to all the rules of the art.”
In response to the US decision, the EU is considering further steps.
“We had voted through a countermeasure package of 20 billion euros and are preparing a package of 70 billion euros in parallel,” he said.
He also noted that the bloc would explore alternative trade partnerships as part of its broader strategy.
“At today's meeting we will also talk about opening new markets, via free trade agreements with, for example, South America, India and Indonesia,” he added.
On Saturday, Trump announced that the US will impose 30% tariffs on the EU and Mexico starting Aug. 1, putting the US-EU trade talks at risk, as the bloc had aimed to finalize a comprehensive trade deal this month.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump shared separate letters addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, announcing a 30% tariff on goods bound for the US from Europe and Mexico.
Ursula von der Leyen then voiced readiness to work toward an agreement with the US by Aug. 1 and vowed to take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures.
