New US trade investigations, Brussels warns: “We will respond to any violation of the tariff agreement”

Brussels – The United States has announced the launch of new investigations into alleged unfair trade practices by dozens of countries, including the European Union and its Member States. This move creates further uncertainty, following the Supreme Court’s rejection less than a month ago of the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump last spring. The European Commission, which has signed a bloody agreement with Washington on reciprocal tariffs, is waiting in the wings and warns: “We will respond firmly and proportionately to any violation of the EU-US joint declaration.” 

Yesterday evening (11 March), the Trump administration’s Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, announced the launch of a series of investigations “under Section 301 of the Trade Act” to assess alleged industrial overcapacity in several countries, including the European Union, China, Japan, India, but also Singapore, Switzerland, South Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Mexico. These economies, “according to the evidence in our possession, appear to have structural excess capacity and production in various manufacturing sectors,” Greer said. Another line of investigation relates to the risk of importing goods made with forced labour, which, Greer said, will affect about 60 partner countries. 

Many of the countries concerned—including the 27 EU Member States—have entered into reciprocal tariff agreements with Washington. These agreements are now suspended or at risk, given the US Supreme Court’s ruling that overturned the tariffs imposed by Trump. These investigations reopen the game once again: “If it is necessary to impose customs duties to resolve the issue, we will do so,” the US Trade Representative has made clear. 

In Brussels, European institutions have been struggling for months to find common ground on implementing the agreement signed by Trump and Ursula von der Leyen in Turnberry, Scotland. The European Parliament has put the necessary legislative acts on hold until at least next week, when the International Trade Committee (IMCO) will decide whether to resume work. IMCO Chair Bernd Lange said: “We knew that investigations would be launched. However, uncertainty remains. There is still no clear commitment from the US government to honour the Turnberry commitments.” 

In a post on X, the German socialist clarified the issue: “Who can guarantee that the final outcome will not result in even higher tariffs for the EU? It is not enough for both sides to simply assume that we will end up back within the Turnberry framework. We need clarity.” 

A few streets away from the European Parliament, the European Commission is asking Washington for the same clarity but insists on continuing to do its homework: “Our position is that we should continue to implement our commitments,” said Trade Spokesperson Olof Gill. The Commission “continues to operate on the basis of the commitments contained in the EU-US declaration, including the tariff cap,” and “expects the United States to do the same.” In addition to asking “the United States for further clarification on how the launch of these investigations will interact with the framework of the agreement,” Gill added a warning: “We will respond firmly and proportionately to any breach of the joint declaration.” Among the range of possible retaliatory measures, the EU has a list of “made in the USA” products ready to be hit with counter-tariffs of up to €93 billion, drawn up before the Scottish agreement, and the activation of the
anti-coercion instrument, which came very close to happening after Trump’s attack on the EU at the World Economic Forum in Davos. 

The European Commission also responded to the substance of the investigation: “The EU shares the US’s concerns about structural overcapacity in the global economy, but the causes of this overcapacity are well identified and do not lie in Europe. The EU is a market-driven economy with open markets and transparent policies. The EU does not consider itself a contributor to structural overcapacity, but rather a partner in addressing global distortions. These challenges can best be addressed through cooperation between partners, as clearly stated in the EU-US joint statement,” the spokesperson added.