Tariffs: Von der Leyen looks to single market reform to respond to Trump

Brussels – The EU does not want a trade war with the United States but is ready to respond. Ursula von der Leyen stands firm. The president of the European Commission does not intend to bow to the threats of the United States and the tariffs decided by president Donald Trump. In the Chamber, she announced a strategy with no details but called on the European Parliament to work on reforming the single market quickly. “Europe’s internal market barriers are equivalent to a tariff of 45 percent for manufacturing and 110 percent for services,” she said, citing an International Monetary Fund analysis.

The EU’s competitiveness also comes down to this: homework. It is the third point of the EU executive’s strategy to counter US protectionist thrusts. Von der Leyen recalls the three points: “First, we are open to negotiations; second, we will continue diversifying our trade partners; and third, we will double down on our Single Market.”

On the first point, “our goal is a negotiated solution,” she stresses. “We do not necessarily want to retaliate, but we have a strong plan to retaliate if necessary,” she warns. As for the second point, the activism of von der Leyen and her college has already resulted in the Mercosur area agreement (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay) and then the new EU-Mexico agreement as a shield against US tariffs and the commitment to a free trade agreement with India by year-end. That leaves the third point, the one that concerns the reform of the single market, and this is where work will focus.

Von der Leyen seeks and asks for the support of all the political groups in the Chamber. She seeks a majority for the needed reforms: “The European Parliament has always worked hard to complete the Single Market. Now we have a generational opportunity to get it done.” The savings union project is part of this reform agenda but will not be the only piece. “I have tasked the executive vice president Séjourné (responsible for industrial strategy, ed.) to come up with concrete and bold proposals next month to remove some of these barriers and prevent new ones.” Von der Leyen is now working on the European response to US tariffs with a truly communitarian response.