The European Parliament approves trade deal with the US—but with conditions

Brussels – The European Parliament has approved the agreement with the United States on trade tariffs, but with certain conditions. MEPs, meeting in plenary session in Brussels, have adopted their position on two legislative proposals implementing the tariff aspects of the EU-US trade agreement reached in Scotland in July by Presidents Ursula von der Leyen and Donald Trump. In effect, the chamber has decided to establish a set of safeguards for trade in agricultural and industrial products: a clause allowing the agreement to be suspended in the event of new tariffs being imposed by the US; a “sunrise” clause making the entry into force of the new rules conditional upon Washington’s compliance with its commitments; a “sunset“ clause setting the expiry date of the measures at 31 March 2028, unless renewed. The rapporteur for the text, the German socialist Bernd Lange, warned: “Any further tariff threats, or a failure to deliver benefits for EU producers and consumers, will result in the termination of the agreement.” With the plenary’s approval, negotiations can now begin with the Council of the EU and the Commission to reach a final version.

Today’s vote, on 26 March, on the two legislative proposals is yet another step in the already long series of developments that began on 27 July last year, when von der Leyen flew to Turnberry, Scotland, to meet Trump at his luxury resort and finalise—and accept—the agreement on tariffs. The texts voted on today by Parliament, if agreed with EU governments, will remove most tariffs on US industrial goods and guarantee preferential market access for a wide range of US seafood products, including lobsters, and agricultural products, in line with the commitments made in the summer of 2025 between the EU and the United States.

Upon closer review of the three clauses, MEPs have decided to strengthen the suspension clause. For example, the Commission could propose the total or partial suspension of trade preferences if the United States were to impose additional tariffs exceeding the agreed limit of 15 per cent, or new types of tariffs on goods originating in the EU. Furthermore, the clause could also be triggered if the United States, for example, were to undermine the objectives of the agreement, discriminate against EU economic operators, threaten the territorial integrity of Member States or their foreign and defence policies, or resort to economic coercion.

In addition, MEPs have introduced the “entry into force clause”, the sunrise clause, under which the new trade preferences will only enter into force if the United States fulfils its commitments, which include reducing tariffs on EU products containing less than 50 per cent steel and aluminium, to a maximum of 15 per cent. “For EU products with a steel and aluminium content of more than 50 per cent, should the United States fail to reduce its tariffs to a maximum of 15 per cent, the EU’s tariff preferences for US exports of steel, aluminium and derived products would cease to apply six months after the entry into force of the regulation,” the Parliament states.

Finally, the “sunset” clause: MEPs have set 31 March 2028 as the expiry date for the main regulation. This deadline may only be extended by means of a new legislative proposal, to be submitted following a thorough impact assessment of the regulation’s effects. In addition to these three clauses, there is a safeguard mechanism: the European Commission will be responsible for monitoring the impact of the new rules and may decide independently to suspend the new tariffs should imports from the United States reach levels that cause damage to EU industry (for example, a 10 per cent increase in imports of a specific product group). The Chair of the Delegation for Relations with the United States and MEP for the Democratic Party, Brando Benifei, explained that “with this amended text, we have corrected imbalances and introduced clear conditions and safeguards for the Union, so that blackmail and pressure from the US administration can be effectively countered and, instead, the stability and certainty demanded by our businesses and their workers can be achieved.”

The ball is now in the court of the trilogues (the informal negotiations between the European Parliament, the Council of the EU, and the European Commission), which will begin on 13 April and aim to reach an internal agreement to swiftly arrive at legislative compromises. Benifei called for the support of “Member States in the Council, including Giorgia Meloni’s government” to ensure that they “do not water down the safeguards voted for today by the European Parliament: doing so would risk derailing any possible agreement.” The rapporteur for the approved texts, Bernd Lange, also argued that “it is absolutely clear that this is a strong stance on the part of Parliament, and we expect the Council and the Commission to align with Parliament’s position, as some of these elements are truly important and crucial for the proper functioning of such an agreement; today it is not just a decision, but a clear and confident stance of the European Parliament.”

During the midday press briefing, the European Commission stated that it was “looking forward” to playing an active role in the next phase of interinstitutional negotiations, emphasising that “this will be an opportunity to discuss these amendments in detail and see how to proceed.” The European Commission expects “the US administration to fulfil its part of the agreement and honour the commitments made in last summer’s joint statement.” “We will continue to engage constructively with the United States on other areas covered by the joint statement, in particular regarding steel, steel products, and other areas for possible tariff exemptions,” explains the Berlaymont Building.